Then and Now
by Miguel Artadi
Summary: Two old friends find themselves reminiscing about the past ten or so years. Will things be any different this time around? Chapter 10 up.
1. Conversations

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did. By the way, this is my first fanfic; so play nice =)  
  
( ) = thoughts  
  
CHAPTER I - Conversations  
  
A phone ring cuts through the steady drone of the TV in an otherwise quiet hotel room in downtown Tokyo. A young woman casually reaches over and answers it, tucking her long blonde hair behind an ear so as to have an easier time handling the receiver.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Kanzaki."  
  
(What the?!?) Her retort was quick and to the point.   
  
"Who is this and what do you want? And how did you know I was staying here?"  
  
She was answered with a complete lack of emotion.   
  
"He said you were back. I wanted to see for myself how you've been."  
  
Irritation.   
  
"Who said…? Wait… just what the hell are you talking about? And who the hell are you?"   
  
"I thought you were supposed to be smart." It was a half-mocking answer delivered in the same tone void of sentiment.  
  
(I'm getting sick of this. Fine then.) Ultimatum.   
  
"Listen here, I don't care how you know my name or who you think you are but I no longer find this amusing. Which means that you've got five seconds to come up with an agreeable answer or I hang up."  
  
"Onizuka said you were back."  
  
The conversation now had her full attention.   
  
"He… so… who is this then?"  
  
"You tell me, genius."  
  
Urumi put two and two together. Onizuka plus someone smart AND capable enough to track her down even when she's given explicit instructions to the hotel for her privacy to be respected and accept no outside calls.   
  
Bingo.  
  
"Kikuchi. Kikuchi Yoshito."  
  
The voice on the other end lightened up, not to mention sounded a lot more cheerful.  
  
"Ha. Smart as always, Kanzaki."  
  
Irritation becomes playfulness. (One smart-ass remark deserves another you prick.)   
  
"Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose."  
  
She could hear him try to suppress a chuckle.   
  
"Nice try. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Old French adage if I'm not mistaken."  
  
(I'm impressed. He's still sharp as ever.) Urumi laughed openly.  
  
"Haha... dork. Why didn't you just tell me who you were in the first place?"  
  
"Just some simple payback. You did tie me up in Okinawa."  
  
(He still remembers that.)   
  
"But I did make sure you were comfortable. Besides, you didn't exactly resist that much either."  
  
The sound of Kikuchi clearing his throat gave her a small, smug smile, so as to celebrate some minor victory.   
  
"Yes well, anyway… like I said Onizuka told me you were back. I figured I'd drop you a line to see how you were doing and what you've been up to all this time."  
  
"Me? Well I arrived here in Tokyo last week. Kanzaki Enterprises, who I've been officially working for since I graduated university, sent me here to assess the local market and to check up on some of our major clientele. So it's mostly been business meetings and such since I got back. Boring stuff if you ask me, but hey, it pays well and allows me to travel quite a bit. So I can't really complain."  
  
"How about yourself, computer nerd? What've you been up to?"  
  
"Pretty much the same thing since junior high. Fiddling around with computers. I get paid to break into corporate servers to test their security and things like that. That's the fun part. It gets tiring when I'm asked to explain to the company that hired me HOW I did it, and what they should do to prevent it from happening. They can't comprehend that it's practically impossible to make anything that's hooked up to the 'net 100% secure these days."  
  
"Oy. That's no fun." Kanzaki mused.  
  
"Tell me about it. By the way, have you visited Seirin since you got back? Onizuka's still there."  
  
"Well to be honest the first thing I did when I got off the plane was look him up. Turns out he's still teaching there. Can't say that I was too surprised that he'd still be in the profession, but I was half-expecting him to be in the senior staff by now."  
  
"Well yes... he said that they tried promoting him, but he refused. He said that he didn't want to lose touch with the students... and I'm sure he wasn't too keen on becoming an administrator either."  
  
"Haha... I can see it now: Onizuka as an administrator. Before they know it he'll be adding porn to the Social Studies curriculum."  
  
Urumi heard her friend laugh through the telephone's receiver. It was good to know that he still trusted her enough to allow her to see that side of him.  
  
"They did make him head coach of the karate team though. I guess the board wanted to give him some more responsibility; as a way of keeping him more or less under control."  
  
"Onizuka under control. Riiight. Maybe when swine can fly." Sarcasm has since become one of her strong suits. After all, she still needed an outlet for her mischief, and though this was a far cry from orchestrating timed concussive explosions and dropping snakes in people's pants, every little bit helped.  
  
"Well he told me that heading the team would give him a better opportunity to interact with the other students in the school. Of course, and how could I not mention this... he did insist that upon his acceptance of the position the practice schedule for the cheerleading squad be set to coincide with theirs."  
  
Urumi found herself giggling like a schoolgirl. (What the hell is wrong with me?) She quickly stopped herself.  
  
"That's Onizuka for you alright. Same pervert that he was when we were kids. He hasn't changed much has he?"  
  
"He's toned down some... marriage and fatherhood commonly does that to a man. But make no mistake, he still raises hell now and then when he wants to, albeit more discreetly now."  
  
"You mean he's actually gone smart? Nooo..."  
  
"Well he had to. He said that Fuyutsuki was the green-eyed monster type, and every time she'd catch him taking sneak peeks at the girl students' panties he'd end up getting kicked out of their apartment. So you imagine that he still stays quite a bit in his old room on the roof."  
  
Urumi couldn't help but find that amusing. The more things change, the more they stayed the same indeed.  
  
"I miss that place. Some of my fondest memories include just chilling out with everyone there."  
  
"Come now. You know that you're not the only one. Most if not all of us pretty much feel that way. Onizuka... he changed our lives; he allowed us to be the kids that we should have been at that age."  
  
(Yes, the kids that we were.) Before she knew it, Urumi started talking about old memories that she seldom shared with anyone else.  
  
"I remember that time when he took me on one of his 'field trips' and rode his motorcycle off that unfinished highway ramp. It was crazy, but it straightened me out, and set things in perspective for me. Funny too, because for all of Onizuka's stupidity and whatnot, he has this… absolutely brilliant way of getting through to you no matter what AND at exactly when the moment calls for it; just like that schoolday afternoon. I distinctly recall one thing he told me after that whole Evil Knievel stunt: that I was a kid, and should smile big and laugh hard like one."  
  
"You know... we saw the whole thing. I was there with Fuyutsuki and the rest of the gang. You ended up screaming your ass off like a little bitch, if I can remember correctly."  
  
"Shut up. I should've figured that out."  
  
"Whatever you say, genius."  
  
"Hey, Kikuchi... I'm curious. Back at Seirin, all the things that went down with Onizuka, you, me, the school and everyone else... you were always so levelheaded. I mean how young were we all? Fourteen? Fifteen? You had an unbelievable amount of self-control at so young an age. How did you do it?  
  
"Ask me again some other time."  
  
Urumi's celfone interrupts the conversation when it starts to ring and flash. She takes a second to look at who's calling and turns her attention back to Kikuchi.  
  
"Hey I have to get this. One of those boring clients I told you about. Sorry. Any chance we could catch up another time?"  
  
"Sure. When're you free?"  
  
"Lunchtime tomorrow would be ideal. I know. Is that dinky little corner restaurant in the old neighborhood still there?"  
  
"As of last week, yeah."  
  
"Okay. So no problems with lunch tomorrow?"  
  
"Na-ah. Lunch at the corner resto it is. See you then Kanzaki."  
  
"You too, Kikuchi."  
  
Click. 


	2. Impressionable Impressions

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
[ ] = thoughts  
  
CHAPTER II – Impressionable impressions  
  
Kikuchi arrived at the restaurant early on purpose. He wanted to avoid the bulk of the lunch-hour crowd and to get a cozy corner booth for him and Kanzaki.   
  
[There we go, right by the window.]  
  
Getting in touch with Urumi was Onizuka's idea. During one of their recent chats, he broached the idea of Kanzaki, who had recently gotten back from abroad, and himself touching base and catching up. Admittedly, he was curious on to how she was and how the years had been treating her, but Onizuka summed it up pretty well in his frank, often brutal way of wisdom:  
  
"Look her up, Kikuchi. You could use some socializing. All you do is work, and you two always got along pretty well, so who knows? Besides, what's the worst that can happen?" his old teacher said between gulps of ramen.  
  
"Let's see. A snake in my pants?"  
  
"Bastard. Don't tell me you're not the least bit curious. AND don't tell me you never found Urumi the least bit attractive." He replied with a leer.  
  
He hated it when Onizuka was right.  
  
"Fine, so I found her attractive. But so what? You know me. I was never one to let my hormones do my thinking for me." Yoshito replied confidently.  
  
"Suuure." Eikichi responded while putting him in a mock headlock.  
  
"Hey watch it! My ramen is spilling!" He protested in vain.  
  
"That's why you were just as curious as everyone else to see how… what's her name? Kanzaki's elementary school teacher? Ah yes, how Fujimori's lingerie looked like," he immediately added.  
  
[Great. He still remembers that. Kikuchi 0, Pervert teacher 2.]  
  
"All right, all right. Lemme go, I'll do it already!" Kikuchi said grudgingly. Only then did his old teacher release the headlock.  
  
"That's a good boy. Anyway... I'm just curious... why didn't the two of you ever hook up anyway? Look, you're both smart, your personalities complement each other, you and her were the respective alpha male and female of 3-4. So… I mean it just makes sense." Onizuka asked while waving his chopsticks around.  
  
"What the hell kind of question is that?!? And since when did you become an authority on relationships??"  
  
Eikichi guffawed.  
  
"Well definitely more of an authority than you." He gleefully answered while pointing out his wedding band.  
  
"Come on, if you didn't really give a rat's ass you wouldn't have any problems answering the question right?"  
  
"Bastard. Fine, I give up. Yes I found her attractive, yes she was always mentally stimulating, yes we were the top dogs in class, and yes our personalities complemented each other. Happy now?"  
  
"Yup. So what was the problem?"  
  
"Idiot. What do you mean what was the problem? She was nuts! She tried blowing up the school!"  
  
"That was before our little field trip. She was pretty ok after that; besides, I'm sure she's toned down some, the same way that you've loosened up since then."  
  
[That's the result of knowing you this long. And please, do try to talk without half-chewed noodles hanging out of your mouth.]  
  
"No, no, no. Listen here, even AFTER you got through to her, Kanzaki still had more issues than Newsweek! Remember that stunt she pulled when things were looking pretty bad? And it seemed like you were going to end up working on a fishing boat for an entire year just to pay off the money you lost?"  
  
"Mmm… how can I forget. It's not everyday you get to hitch a ride on a blimp how many stories up in the air."  
  
[He doesn't get it. Ugh.]  
  
"Whatever. Kanzaki was crazy. Unstable. She had a few loose screws in her head. Miyabi and the others could've really gotten hurt then."  
  
"You have a point there."  
  
"Of course I do." Kikuchi readjusted his glasses with poise.  
  
"Then again, I wouldn't say crazy. Fanatical maybe, even passionate. Devoted, even. 'Sides, aside from the fact that Aizawa pissed her off, she did it to raise money for me remember? Her heart was in the right place."  
  
"Bah. Semantics." Yoshito replied as he slurped his noodles.  
  
Onizuka changed his tone.  
  
[Oh, no. Not another lecture.]  
  
"Listen to me, Kikuchi Yoshito. Kanzaki… she was a handful all right, but I'm sure you've seen first-hand how loyal she was to those she saw as her real friends. That girl would move heaven and earth if it meant protecting them. Come to think of it, her adopted family."  
  
[Huh? Now what the hell is he talking about?]  
  
"Whaat? What adopted family?"  
  
"Us, idiot. She didn't exactly come home to a warm, love-filled household everyday, so where was she the happiest and the most comfortable? In the classroom, with all of us."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. So what's your point?"  
  
"My point is that for all of Urumi's faults and shortcomings, she is EXACTLY the kind of woman you want watching your back. Passionate loyalty and ironclad devotion are scarce commodities these days my friend, even among both genders."  
  
[I can't win.]  
  
"Fine, okay already. I already said I'd look her up. Can I eat in peace now?" Kikuchi finally said, exasperated.  
  
"As long as you're paying. Don't worry, you won't regret it. Oh yeah, and can you give me more passwords for those adult sites? The ones you gave me last month expired." Onizuka added with a mouthful of noodles.  
  
[Bah. That pervert. Enough daydreaming. Back to the matter at hand.]  
  
Kikuchi scanned the street outside for any sign of Kanzaki.  
  
[There she is.]  
  
He spotted her getting off a cab a quarter block away from the restaurant. After paying the driver, she started walking towards his direction in a most confident, though non-ostentatious manner. The other males on the street immediately took notice of her arrival, but the only mark of her acknowledging the attention she was getting was a slight, almost undetectable smirk on her face. While most were content to merely admire the attractive young woman, one in particular, a young man about his age, actually walked up to her and (try to) introduced himself.  
  
[This should be interesting.] He thought.  
  
Kikuchi saw Urumi instantly adopt that endearing expression and smile that she had successfully used throughout her student years and replied to the daring young man. He couldn't hear her of course, but the angle that he was observing her from was just right for him to read her lips.  
  
He could almost hear her actually speak the words.  
  
"Nice to meet you. Sure I'd love to get a drink with you later, but I'm on my way to see my parole officer. Care to accompany me?"  
  
Kikuchi couldn't help but laugh.   
  
[That's her all right. Good 'ol Kanzaki.]  
  
He could see that it took her only a second or two to spot his place upon entering the crowded restaurant. She started walking towards him… and they locked eyes.  
  
[Whoa... mama.]  
  
This was not exactly the Urumi he remembered. This… woman coming towards him was… stunning. Sure, she had already been eye-catching back in junior high, but now…  
  
Yoshito allowed his eyes to wander some more.  
  
Her goldilocks-colored tresses were a tad shorter than he remembered, and she had worn them down today, nicely framing the delicate lines of her shoulders. The girlish figure she had in junior high had matured into a slender, well (ahem) proportioned one, nicely filling out the corporate ensemble she had on; a sharp, charcoal gray business suit worn over a simple, white translucent blouse. She had the top few buttons undone on her shirt, giving his imagination a stir he was _quite_ unprepared for.  
  
[This is Urumi!?!?? Hey…]  
  
He focused his eyes some more.  
  
[Lordy, she's wearing a black brassiere. The shade's visible from under the shirt.]  
  
Kikuchi bit his tongue.   
  
[Get your mind out of the gutter! You've been hanging around Onizuka too much. Okay, okay… relax. Focus on her face. That's it.]  
  
He found himself staring at her lips.  
  
[The eyes you fool! Look her in the eyes! And relax damn it! Be the Kikuchi she remembers! Level-headed, smooth! Poker face, poker face…]  
  
His body did as it was told this time.  
  
[Huh? Wait a minute. Something's not right here. Both her eyes are blue.]  
  
Before he could deliberate it any further she was already there standing beside their table.  
  
"Hey there, stud, would you mind if we shared a table? There aren't any more seats available." She said to him engagingly.  
  
[Only a fool would.]  
  
"It'd be my pleasure miss, though I would have to decline if I had to escort you to your parole officer later on." He replied with a grin.  
  
He waved her to sit down right across him.  
  
"Please, have a seat, Kanzaki Urumi."   
  
She laughed and took her seat.  
  
"You saw that huh? Well it's an effective deterrent for 95% of unwanted advances."  
  
[I bet.]  
  
"What about the remaining 5%?"  
  
"Those are the nutcases. That's when I break out the snakes."  
  
It was Kikuchi's turn to laugh.  
  
"Anyhow, you look good, Kanzaki."  
  
[Idiot. You don't get brownie points for stating the obvious.]  
  
"Likewise, Kikuchi."  
  
[Heh. That's always a good thing.]  
  
She grabbed a menu.  
  
"I'm famished. Sorry if I kept you waiting." She added.  
  
"No worries. Shall we order now?" He signaled to a waitress that they were ready to order.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Thanks for the reviews everyone!  
  
I tend to write from a single person's perspective (Kikuchi in 'Impressionable impressions, Urumi in 'Conversations') so that partly explains why these are pretty convo-heavy. I'm still debating on how to write the next few chapters, where I'll be attempting to tell the story from both persons' POV's.  
  
ja ne =) 


	3. Foreplay: Irresistible Force, Immovable ...

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
[ ] = Kikuchi's thoughts  
  
( ) = Kanzaki's thoughts  
  
[( )] = Collective thoughts  
  
  
  
Chapter III - Foreplay: Irresistible Force, Immovable Object  
  
"Mmm... good stuff. I miss the food here. Simple yet delicious, good bang for your buck." Kanzaki said as she twirled the last of her pasta.   
  
"Things seldom turn out the way you think they would've huh?" she added thoughtfully.  
  
"Hmm? What do you mean?" Kikuchi asked.  
  
"It's just funny how things go back full circle. Who would've thought that even after a decade or so, we'd find both ourselves here where it all began: Tokyo. Having lunch at the old neighborhood even."   
  
"You know the saying: There's no place like home."  
  
"Don't play smart with me dork.. You know what I'm trying to say."  
  
"Just teasing, Kanzaki. So what've you been up to?  
  
(Teasing? Him? I guess hanging with Onizuka all this time loosened him up.)  
  
"I already told you last night. I've been working for Kanzaki Enterprises for the last couple years."  
  
"Pssh. That can't be all of it. Come now, we barely heard from you. Only Onizuka got word from you on a regular basis. And when we did ask him about how you were, all he'd say was that the little brown and blue-eyed genius from hell had her shit together and was doing fine."  
  
Urumi made a sour look.  
  
"Okay fine, Mister I-want-all-the-nasty-little-details. I went straight to MIT after graduating. Figured I just wanted to get it over with, not that it was that hard mind you."  
  
"'Course not."  
  
"Shut up."  
  
[Heh. Hot-blooded as ever.]  
  
"Anyway, after MIT I took a year off just to see the rest of the world. I traveled anywhere and everywhere I could."  
  
She started ticking off her fingers.  
  
"I started off by checking out the rest of the American continent: Went around Canada and most of the South American countries. Then backpacked through France, Spain, Italy, England... basically a sizeable chunk of the 'Old World.' Then over to the Pacific; Australia and the rest of East and Southeast Asia."  
  
"Nice. Who bankrolled it?"  
  
Urumi grinned.  
  
"The company of course. I said that if they wanted me to work for them, they pretty damn sure make it worth my while. I also convinced them that my having a more global market perspective would do them good in the long run; even though we both know I didn't exactly need it. Besides, God knows how much I've already made for them since I was a kid."  
  
Kikuchi grinned back.  
  
"True I guess. So when did the travel bug bite you? I don't recall you having a particular taste for it."  
  
"To be honest... something that Onizuka told me back here in Tokyo. He said that people who thought that they understood everything intellectually annoyed him. It was a pretty simple statement, and I'm sure he didn't mean any more than that, but I kept thinking about it. All these years it stuck with me, and eventually hardened into some resolve where I no longer merely would KNOW facts about something, but actually appreciate and comprehend it first-hand."  
  
[She HAS matured.]  
  
"You mean things like the Gundam universe?" Yoshito asked lightheartedly.  
  
Urumi narrowed her eyes.  
  
(Oooohhh. You're gonna pay for that.)  
  
"That's... not... funny."  
  
[It is from where I'm sitting dear.]  
  
"Seriously now, I get what you're trying to say I think. Correct me if I'm wrong, okay?" he added.  
  
"Go ahead. Take your best shot, computer nerd." Kanzaki rolled her eyes and waved her hand, feigning boredom.   
  
Kikuchi wore an amused expression on his face, readjusted his glasses and smirked inwardly.  
  
[Hahaha. Picking a fight? Now you're gonna get it, sweetheart.] He decided to ignore that particular cheap shot.  
  
"The way you were back in Seirin - the little genius from hell - as Onizuka puts it, you made a point to unnerve everyone with your mental capacity for facts and numbers. In hindsight, it was all pedantry; brilliant pedantry mind you, but it was still quite effective in terrorizing pretty much the entire teaching faculty, not to mention letting everyone else know that you weren't to be trifled with."  
  
(Bah. Weak stuff.)  
  
"Thank you for the history lesson. And your point is...?"  
  
"Yes, well let me finish. Like I said, you lived up exactly to what your IQ score labeled you as: a genius extraordinaire. But what is genius anyway? Knowing hard facts and numbers about anything and everything isn't the be-all end-all of it. Look at Michelangelo and the Sistine Chapel; that simple, indescribable awe that simply washes over you when you gaze up at the frescoes. His genius could be felt through his work. And that Kanzaki, was something you knew you didn't have."  
  
Urumi felt uncomfortable. She shifted her eyes elsewhere.  
  
"It's like if the old you was asked to describe what love was, and assuming you wouldn't go off-tangent with your 'passing on the genes argument,' you'd probably mechanically quote a line from W.B. Yeats. But it would be empty, since you never truly experienced what romantic love was."  
  
Silence.  
  
[Bingo.]  
  
(How can you see right through me? Have I always been this transparent to you?)   
  
Kikuchi 1, Kanzaki 0  
  
She wasn't used to people reading her so easily. That unnerved her.  
  
(Quick, say something. Anything!)  
  
"So how does this tie in with my traveling?"  
  
"I think you figured that the first thing necessary in fulfilling your potential was, for lack of a better term, experience. Experience what other people all over the world did and thought not only by reading about them or watching them on TV, but to actually be with them, and get to know them as human beings with their own distinct way of life."  
  
Kanzaki hadn't felt this vulnerable, this... naked in a long time. She mentally rolled up her sleeves, and decided to change the subject, so as to score some hits of her own.  
  
(Get a hold of yourself! No way in hell I'm letting him get away with that kind of humiliation.)  
  
Urumi looked down on her empty plate and tucked some loose hair behind an ear with her hand.  
  
[Eh? What the hell is she doing?]  
  
"You've always seen through me, haven't you Kikuchi? But I have a confession to make. Ever since junior high, when we started hanging out together a lot with Onizuka and the gang, there's something that a part of me has always wanted to let you know. It's quite absurd really... I mean I just can't get it out of my head. You're going to think that it's really silly I know, but there's something I have to come clean about."  
  
[She's trying something. Don't fall for it.]  
  
"What're you trying to tell me Kanzaki?"  
  
(Now for added drama...)  
  
She made eye contact and stared as intensely and as deeply as she could at him, and held it. He returned the gaze, but could slowly feel those twin blues chip away at his resolve; not to mention becoming aware of tiny beads of sweat starting to roll down his shirt.  
  
[Blergh, stop looking at me like that.]  
  
She reached across the table, grabbed his hands and spoke again, softer this time. Kikuchi was bordering on sensory overload.  
  
"Kikuchi... Kikuchi Yoshito... you and me. We'll be perfect together. Think about it, we're both smart, yet we're still worlds apart. We can balance each other out... like yin and yang." her voice was pleading.  
  
"Let's get married, let's start a family of our own."  
  
And for a microsecond, Yoshito's brain shorted out; just his luck he was sipping his coffee. He choked and spat out what was in his mouth, felt some of it go up his nose, and managed to spill the rest of his cup all over himself. Urumi looked up just in time to see her friend imitate The 3 Stooges all by his lonesome. She started laughing hysterically.  
  
(Whoohooo!! I am sooo good. And bonus points for the coffee stains.)  
  
"Hahaha! Gotcha!! Just kidding!! You know that's the first time I've ever caught you off guard like that." She said inbetween laughs while putting on her 'innocent' look.  
  
[@#*(#%&!!! Why you little...]  
  
"Ahhh... that's hoooot. Goddamn coffee. My dick's on fire. Thank you so much for that." Yoshito smarted, painfully.  
  
"Anytime, dear."  
  
Kikuchi 1, Kanzaki 2  
  
(Poor guy. Ah well, all's fair in love and war...!??!!)  
  
And for another microsecond, it was Kanzaki's turn to be confused by her own thoughts. She quickly interrupted it before it could gain a foothold in her mind.  
  
"Good thing my old house is just a block from here. I can get a change of clothes easy. Do you have anywhere else to go after this?" he added.  
  
"Just a business meeting. Nothing out of the ordinary."  
  
"So that's why you're wearing colored contacts. Makes sense I guess."  
  
"You know folks here, still enamored by blonde hair and blue eyes."  
  
[An opening.]  
  
"True. You gotta do what you gotta do for that competitive advantage. Though personally, I prefer your eyes' natural colors. It gives you more... character."  
  
(You do? I never thought... ACK!!! Stop it! He's doing it again!)  
  
"Uh-huh. Well, thanks. I think." Taken by surprise with that compliment, Urumi unconsciously started twirling her hair in her finger.  
  
[Ah, hair twirling. Slow and steady wins the game.]  
  
(Why is he hitting on me? Is he serious?)  
  
Kikuchi 1.5, Kanzaki 2  
  
"You're welcome." Yoshito replied cooly, glancing at his watch.  
  
"Hey... I have to split. I have to talk with the security techs of the last corporate system I broke into in half an hour. And seeing as how my clothes have coffee stains all over them, I'm gonna have to get dressed. Again." He added dryly.  
  
"Heehee. Sorry for that." Urumi giggled.  
  
[You know, she's adorable when she laughs like that. It almost makes the prank worth it. ALMOST.] Kikuchi thought as he tried to clean himself up with napkins.  
  
"No you're not." He retorted.  
  
"Huh? I'm not what?"  
  
"Sorry for making me spill coffee all over myself."  
  
She laughed again.  
  
"True. I had to see if I could catch you off-balance. It was a mighty interesting spectacle mind you. One worth remembering owing to its rarity." She said in a matter-of-fact tone while holding her index finger up.  
  
"Bah. Anyway... I have to take my leave of you Kanzaki Urumi. It's been real nice talking with you; we should do this again." Yoshito grinningly replied while getting up from his end of the booth.  
  
"We definitely should Kikuchi Yoshito." Urumi replied, getting up herself.  
  
"It was great seeing you." She added while stepping forward and giving him a hug. And while not really knowing why... a quick peck on the cheek.  
  
Kikuchi leaned in awkwardly to respond to his old friend's embrace and kiss, and then found himself holding her longer than he should.  
  
[(Whoa...)]  
  
They let go of each other, slightly blushing and embarrassed. Kikuchi fished in his pocket for a business card, scribbled his personal celfone number on it, and handed it to Urumi. She did the same.  
  
"I'll call you."  
  
(You better.)  
  
"Okay, I'll hold you to that y'hear?"  
  
"Hey now, when did I ever let you down? Oh and Kanzaki..." Kikuchi added before walking away.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"You know what they say about jokes right?"  
  
(Psh, that's old. I saw that coming a mile away.)  
  
"What about them? That they're all half-meant?"  
  
"You got it. But you still made one knowing this." He countered before giving her one last grin and heading off.  
  
(Damn it.)  
  
Kikuchi 2, Kanzaki 2  
  
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Again, thanks to those who took the time out to review the fic: Ninja Gaijin, Chareon, Allence of the Weed, GreatLight432, Reika, Aeris, Riyuji.Raicho, Anime Goddess, Scarlet, Seth7, and especially Luna Stop Swearing for the major props.   
  
I had a harder time with this one than with the last two; I've lost count how many times I've watched and re-watched GTO to make sure the characters weren't OOC. Heh. =P  
  
'Till the next chapter! =)  
  
****  
  
6 April 2004: Chapter 3 updated for typos. 


	4. Revelations in 20:20 Hindsight

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
( ) = thoughts  
  
  
  
CHAPTER IV – Revelations in 20/20 Hindsight  
  
Urumi was confused. She found herself in a dark unlit bedroom... drawn curtains, rows of shelves filled with books, an unkept bed, the faint glow of the TV giving off nothing more than a steady buzz of static.  
  
(This is... was my old bedroom. But I cleaned this place out before I left Tokyo.)  
  
She bent down and picked up a stray manuscript lying on the floor and read its title.  
  
"The Republic, by Plato"  
  
Still curious, she picked up and scanned the covers of a few more.  
  
(Kant, Darwin, Aquinas, Einstein...)  
  
She sighed. It was all coming back to her. Kanzaki knew each and every single book and tidbit of literature she had here. Setting aside those she had just picked out, she stood and reached over to the top shelf; that special place where she kept her favorite volumes.  
  
(It should be here somewhere.)  
  
Urumi ran her fingers over the assorted book spines lined up there. Knowing each and every one by touch, she continued her prodding until she found the one she wanted, and then promptly drew it out.   
  
"C'mon where is it... ah, there you are."  
  
The half-inch thick volume she took was labeled '3-4' and turned out to be a sketch and scrapbook of sorts she had kept during those earlier years. She had started this when she realized that she was changing, in the few weeks after Onizuka took her on that joyride of a lifetime. Unbeknownst to many, Urumi was a skilled artist with both pencil and charcoal. That coupled with her photographic memory enabled her to re-create any single moment of her life that she wanted to on paper. She leafed lazily through the pages, smiling and smirking when a doodle or entry she saw brought her back to that particular instance in time.   
  
"Here's one." She said to herself.  
  
The entry she stopped at showed a rough drawing of how Onizuka looked like back in Okinawa, right after she had dropped the habu in his shorts. He was holding the rear end of the snake up with one hand while gesturing towards Azusa with the other for help. She focused on the expression on his face. It was hilarious, to say the least.  
  
She couldn't help but laugh at the memory.  
  
"Hah. That idiot. Serves him right I say." She added, smirking.  
  
She skimmed back and forth over a few more pages, and paused at a full-page sketch she had done of Kikuchi reading a book on their first day under the Okinawan sun. Together they had found a relatively quiet corner of the beachfront and relaxed; him with his book, her just chilling out and working on her tan.  
  
"He looked so handsome that day."  
  
(Huh?!? Where the hell did that come from?)  
  
As if they had a mind of their own, Urumi tentatively ran her fingers over the pencil sketch, hoping that some sort of texture would greet her touch. This was the moment she noticed that her hands were... odd. She pulled them closer to her face, palms up.  
  
(My hands... they're... small.)  
  
She set aside the scrapbook and walked over to her bathroom mirror. The reflection that greeted her took her completely by surprise: staring back was a Kanzaki who couldn't have been more than ten, maybe eleven years old.  
  
(This was me in elementary... when I used to visit with Fujimori.)  
  
Recollections of her subsequent betrayal filled her mind. Urumi bit her lip while tears started forming in her eyes.  
  
Urumi never cried, much less in public. Those were her cardinal rules. Here it felt different however, she felt safe... far away from the judging eyes of others.  
  
(How could you do that? I trusted you. I was just a child.) She thought before she started sniffling, letting salty tears roll freely down her cheeks. Annoyed at her outward show of weakness, she rubbed them dry.  
  
"Teachers make mistakes too you know."  
  
That voice was unmistakable. Onizuka.  
  
She whirled around to face him, yet doing so, only saw faceless bikers decked out in gang colors lined up on either side of her, their emotionless, questioning eyes staring at her with quiet inquisition.  
  
"Where the hell?"  
  
Looking around, she saw that she was no longer in her room, but at the edge of an unfinished, all-too recognizable highway ramp. Kanzaki checked herself again, and saw that she was older now, halfway through her teenage years, wearing her old junior high uniform.   
  
(This is where I fell. But where's Onizuka? This isn't right.)  
  
"Hey look, a 500 yen coin!" it was his voice again.  
  
Urumi panicked. Alarm bells went off inside her head.  
  
(This wasn't the way it happened!!)  
  
"No stop! Don't pick it up! I don't want to jump!" she yelled, too little and too late.  
  
Urumi's body couldn't move as fast as her thoughts dictated. She felt the all-too familiar bump on her behind, and before she could react, was plunging headfirst towards the unforgiving concrete below. Something else was different this time though: her teacher wasn't falling WITH her. She was dropping to her death, alone.  
  
"No." she whimpered. Scenes from her life flashed before her eyes.  
  
Fujimori with the strawberry cake.  
  
Onizuka and the habu.  
  
Kikuchi and her sharing a quiet moment on the beach.  
  
She didn't want to die. Not like this. Not now.  
  
"SENSEI!!!" was all that her lungs permitted her to scream.  
  
Time seemed to slow down as the torrent of rushing air ripped her hair and uniform about in frenzy. Looking up from her free-fall, she discerned a figure jumping off the ramp towards her. It caught up with her fairly quickly, and spoke in reassurance.  
  
"Gotcha." She heard him say as she felt strong arms wrap around her body, protectively shielding her from any and all harm. She clutched onto him for dear life. Urumi turned her head and spoke in her rescuer's ear.  
  
"I knew I could always count on you, Onizuka."  
  
"You silly." She heard him say before drawing back and looking at her through a pair of glasses.  
  
It was Kikuchi.  
  
(But how??)  
  
The moment she felt them hit rock bottom, blackness overtook her sight. There was no pain, however. Urumi couldn't see anything, nor feel anything. It was as if she had fallen into a bottomless pit, devoid of any and all light. She groped in the darkness for any sign of Kikuchi's presence, and found none. Once more, she found herself alone.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
Murmurs. She could hear murmurs in the distance. Barely making them out, Urumi strained her ears.  
  
"Moonsault dive!!!"  
  
"Idiot! You'll die!"  
  
(It was that day at the poolside.)  
  
And in an instant, she found herself reliving the moment again, as fresh as if it was happening in the present.  
  
"You've changed, Kanzaki."  
  
(Have I? That much?)  
  
"You used to force yourself to smile, and when you did, you usually wore a blank expression on your face."  
  
(Even back then, you were always watching me, weren't you?) Urumi thought, inwardly blushing at the idea.  
  
"Onizuka's really different. I mean he's stupid, simple-minded, lewd and a punk... it's hard to believe he's a teacher."  
  
"Yeah." Kikuchi nodded.  
  
"Me, who hated school so much, can't help coming here everyday now. It's really strange... I wonder if I owe him for that? This is the first time I've ever thought school to be fun. I hope this lasts forever."  
  
"It will. As long as I'm here."  
  
(?!??!)  
  
Kikuchi sat down beside her.  
  
(Wait a minute...this isn't the way I remember it!)  
  
"Kanzaki. There's something you have to understand." Yoshito said softly as he gently guided her chin with his fingers until they were face to face. He leaned in closer, and Urumi felt her cheeks flush red and her heart thump vigorously in her chest. Her pulse quickened, as did her breathing.  
  
(He's going to kiss me!!?!)  
  
Urumi froze and shut her eyes, partly in anticipation, partly in shock at Kikuchi's behavior. When she opened them again, he was gone, and the old void greeted her once more.  
  
"No wait, what were you trying to tell me??" she called out.  
  
"Kanzaki!! Kanzaki Urumi! Come out!" It was Onizuka again. The blackness coalesced into another old memory: she was looking down at him and his gang in the parking lot from their old classroom. She was flanked by familiar friends: Yoshikawa and Murai on one side, and Kikuchi on the other.  
  
Yoshito spoke up.  
  
"Oy, teacher's calling you. What're you gonna do?" he asked in that same mocking, audacious tone he used a decade back.  
  
(Prick. I'm not afraid of him.)  
  
He spoke again, this time eyeing her.  
  
"So go down and meet him then."  
  
(Watch me. And when I'm through with him, I'm coming after y...)  
  
Urumi stopped just before she ended her statement.  
  
(...)  
  
It is said that human beings have a handful of flawless, perfect moments of clarity scattered throughout their lifetime. Instances where for one shining split-second, one purely immaculate moment, all the pieces of an elusive puzzle fall neatly into place. For Kanzaki Urumi, genius extraordinaire, this flash of inspiration lasted a small eternity.  
  
"You silly."  
  
"... used to force yourself to smile..."  
  
"... I wonder if I owe him for that..."  
  
"It will. As long as I'm here."  
  
"... teacher's calling you. What're you gonna do?"  
  
(That's.... it. How could I have missed it all these years??? Kikuchi... he's been watching me, looking out for me since day one! If it weren't for him and that slighting remark of his aimed at my pride, I... I wouldn't have gone down to meet Onizuka's challenge. Which means that I'd still be...)  
  
Kanzaki couldn't believe this revelation. It was all so clear now! She was however, unprepared for the implications it presented.  
  
(But wait... so does this mean that I owe him, and not Onizu...)  
  
That was Urumi's most coherent thought before waking up to the familiarity of her hotel room, the oversized shirt she had on soaked in her own sweat. She sat up, brought her knees in close and buried her face in her pillow, still feeling the slight swelling of her eyes from the crying she had apparently done in her sleep.  
  
"Stupid dream. I owe HIM?!??"  
  
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Thanks everyone for the reviews! Riyuji.Raicho, mikethebigW, Prizz, Angel-wing2, GreatLight432, Allence of the Weed, Reika, Luna Stop Swearing, and Seth7.  
  
mikethebigW: I tried to liken it more to a boxing match. Urumi would be a George Foreman type power-puncher, Kikuchi would be the sneaky jab-crazy counter-puncher.  
  
GreatLight432: Sometimes the juices flow not at all, other times I have trouble sleeping if I don't write my ideas down. Good thing I'm on vacation.  
  
Reika: Thought about that (former lovers and such). I'm still juggling the ideas in my head. I think it's still too early in the story to bring that in though, perhaps MUCH later.  
  
This and half of the next chapter was the result of a single, sleepless night infront of my PC. I hate it when that happens. Ruins my sked for the next day. Bleh.  
  
'Till the next time! =)  
  
11 April - Corrected typos (again). 


	5. Rationalizing Desire

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did. Ditto with the MechWarrior franchise.  
  
[ ] = Kikuchi's thoughts  
  
( ) = Kanzaki's thoughts  
  
Keyser Soze = Kikuchi's online game handle  
  
Yojimbo = Yoshikawa's online game handle  
  
  
  
Chapter V - Rationalizing Desire  
  
Earlier that same night, Kikuchi found himself playing online with another old friend from Seirin whom he regularly touched base with: Yoshikawa. This evening, his friend had convinced him to play the latest MechWarrior title that had hit the game shelves. As they always did when playing together, Yoshito and Noboru had attached hands-free headsets to their phones, doing away with the game's slow and tedious built-in typed team command interface.  
  
"You hear me all right Kikuchi? I'm Yojimbo okay? Make sure you join in under Delta lance, that's my command."  
  
Yoshito adjusted the mike piece on his headset.  
  
"Got it Yoshikawa, I'm logging in as Keyser Soze. Now joining Delta team. There. I'm in. Which Mech do you want me to use?"  
  
"Use the YN Longbow variant I set up just for you; let's have you play long-range support and spotter on this one. Let me and the two others in the group jump right into the battle while you hang back and keep an eye on the bigger picture, then rain in the LRMs when you can. Oh, and don't worry about our teammates, they're friends who're sitting with their own PCs right beside me, so they'll follow my lead."  
  
Kikuchi selected the assault battlemech that Noboru had set up and checked the stats. He couldn't believe his eyes. According to the armor and weapons loadout on the screen, this machine was too heavy to even move, yet the speed rating was clocked at a maximum of 64.4kph, quite fast for a behemoth supposedly weighing in at 85-plus tons. He laughed at his friend's design.  
  
"Hah, you cheater. Seventy tons of armor plating and ten 20-pack long-range missile launchers in addition to the backup large lasers? I can take on one or two entire lances with all this firepower! Not to mention that I've got about two hundred salvos per launcher. Won't this thing melt like butter in a frying pan with all the heat it's going to make?  
  
"Quit complaining and play already, I just wanted to make sure that you don't get your ass handed to you since most of the people playing here are regulars. The guy who runs the server is our teammate, not to mention he works for me, so the tweaks won't be a problem. Besides, everybody else will be busy trying to kill each other, so no one will really notice. So just blast away and have fun, no use getting all stressed out right?"  
  
"Whatever you say. Launching now."  
  
"That's the spirit. So while we're waiting for the whole thing to load up, tell me, how was it? The lunch date? You and Kanzaki met up, right?"  
  
"Yeah, it was pretty good. We talked about stuff; old stuff, new stuff, what we've basically been up to these years. Nothing really out of the ordinary if you ask me." Yoshito replied, omitting the hot coffee reference for now.  
  
"So do you still dig her?"  
  
Kikuchi paused.  
  
[You know you do.]  
  
"Hey, talk to me here. Spill the beans, man. Do you?"  
  
[What the hell.]  
  
"Yeah. 'Guess I still do." He finally admitted, watching the launch progress bar inch up to 40 percent.  
  
"Nice. So what's stopping you from going for date number two?"  
  
"To be honest I'm not that sure. Could be the old issues, old memories. Or, don't forget she was pretty unbalanced back then, even after Oni got through to her."  
  
"Screw that. Everybody was whacked to a certain degree. Remember the crap I pulled? It's called teenage angst; most everyone I know went through that phase, well... 'cept maybe for you, mister poker face."  
  
"Quit blowing smoke up my ass. I just don't want anybody else to get hurt. Oh finally. Pay attention, game's starting." Kikuchi readied himself.  
  
"Anybody else as in anybody? Or anybody else as in yourself?" Yoshikawa countered.  
  
"Smart ass. Are we playing or what?"  
  
"Hey you just worry about getting your missiles in there; me and the guys do this everyday. And besides, I'm just trying to give something back. You know I still owe you and the big O huge, for what you guys did for me in junior high, and when the shit hit the fan big time after that."  
  
Kikuchi remembered the older days before his friend's physical and mental growth spurt. Yoshikawa Noboru was the class runt, bullied and pushed around by girls, not a shred of self-confidence in him. Who would've thought that he'd become the man he is today: a much sought-after game development consultant and a free diver in his own time, among other things. In some ways, an exception to the old French adage, 'the more things change, the more they stay the same.'  
  
"And I keep telling you. It's all good. Wait, Yojimbo? I see you and the other two in front of me. You're in the Kodiak right?"  
  
"Copy that Keyser Soze, that's me. We're all using assault class tonight: you in the Longbow, me in the Kodiak plus an Atlas and a Masakari to round things out. So as I was trying to say, you can't blame a guy who's just looking out for his friends." He added.  
  
"Psh. You getting sappy on me boy? Heads up, we got our first target. Timberwolf class. Locking on now... there! Launching missiles." Kikuchi said as he triggered the Mech's LRMs. It took about a handful of seconds for them to reach the target, peppering it with explosions and causing it to limp and stagger. He was sort of disappointed he couldn't destroy it with one salvo.  
  
"Asshole. Sappy my ass. Thanks for softening him up. Finishing him off now." Kikuchi heard Yoshikawa say over the headset. Yoshito promptly saw the Kodiak his friend was piloting pummel the enemy Mech into oblivion. A nifty little explosion soon followed.  
  
"Right back at you. Oy, there's the rest of them coming from the same vector. Looks like two lances combined, minus the one we just took out; mostly heavy class and some mediums from what I can tell."  
  
Yoshikawa and the rest of his team did exactly what he said they would: plunge right into the mess of it, resulting in a cascading display of laser blasts, missile explosions and the occasional PPC discharge. Noboru spoke up again, not a hint of stress in his voice.  
  
"I told you, I do this everyday, so quit changing the subject. Ask her out already. You know you want to."  
  
"For what? Dinner? Isn't that too... well, ordinary?" Yoshito answered, directing more of his missiles into the thickest of the fighting.  
  
"Aww shit I don't know. I'll leave the specifics to you genius. You're supposed to be the creative one remember?" his friend countered, his voice absolutely dripping with sarcasm.  
  
"Bastard."  
  
Kikuchi heard his friend laugh at this through his earpiece, all the while taking on three opponents all by himself.  
  
[Well he DOES play this practically every day.]  
  
"Haha, I haven't seen you this off your rocker since we were all panicking trying to find anything about teacher Saito with the mess Miyabi got herself into. Come to think of it, do you remember that time?"  
  
"Of course. Which part? HEY! Someone's taking potshots at me! Gauss rifle! I can't see him; he's coming from your general direction."  
  
"Don't worry I got him. Anyway when we were all in your room, just before I found Saito's website with his explanation, remember Murai getting all hyped up and telling everyone to hurry and do something? Remember when he tried rapping on you too? Who spoke up for you?"  
  
Yoshito saw another brief explosion, then narrowed his eyes and went back to the moment a decade ago.  
  
[Kanzaki.]  
  
"Urumi did, didn't she? Great. More pressure on me." Kikuchi said dryly.  
  
"Hah. What're friends for? Look man, just ask yourself if you like her enough to actually ask her out on a REAL date this time. What've you got to lose? It ain't like you're proposing to her or anything." Yoshikawa said as Kikuchi watched him take out two more enemies with a steady barrage of lasers and missiles.  
  
"She did that you know; asked me to marry her on our lunch out." Yoshito retorted in a slightly amused tone.  
  
"Holy crap! Then what?"  
  
"I was drinking coffee. Spilled it all over myself. Crap was hot, too."  
  
He heard his friend hoot hysterically on the other end.  
  
"Sounds like she got you good! Man, that was classic Kanzaki for you."  
  
"She started laughing like crazy after that though, a real honest laugh. The way she always did when she wasn't so guarded. Got to admit, she was cute as hell." Kikuchi said into his mike piece, enjoying the memory of Urumi looking absolutely adorable in the restaurant.  
  
With all his missile launchers still reloading, Yoshito relied on his twin large lasers for the meantime. Tracking a single enemy Mech that was flanking his teammate in the Atlas, he thumbed the fire button again and again, shooting every time the crosshairs would indicate a solid lock and turn red. His diligence paid off when he saw his target stumble and fall, followed by the ever-welcome pyrotechnics that signaled its demise.  
  
[Got one.]  
  
"Nice shot. Kikuchi, listen to yourself. You've got a schoolboy crush on her. Sure you're mister laidback poker face outside but under all of that, you're still a human being with human wants and needs. Hormones or love or whatever. Keeping that in mind, I'm sure she is too."  
  
"She's real good at hiding it."   
  
"You're one to talk."  
  
"Ugh. So what should I do? Just give it a go? What about, you know? The old issues?" Yoshito responded, slightly annoyed at the way he was acting, blindly firing missile salvo after salvo.  
  
"Everybody has issues my friend. What matters is how you deal with them."  
  
"What a very Onizuka-like thing to say."  
  
"Jackass. Can you blame me?"  
  
"Nah, not really. Lets hope she doesn't shoot me down."  
  
"For what it's worth, I don't think she will. So when're you going to ask her?"  
  
"Soon. Don't worry I really will I promise. Okay, can we focus on the game now? Armor's down to 72 percent." As if on cue, Kikuchi saw twin shafts of blue PPC lightning hit his viewscreen head on. The next thing his monitor displayed was a slow-motion replay of his machine staggering to the ground, thick black smoke billowing where the cockpit should have been.  
  
[Great. A twin PPC headshot.]  
  
"I'm dead. Headshot. Dammit."  
  
"Aww crap. I must've forgotten to tweak the head armor when I did everything else. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted. Just give me a minute to mop-up the rest of these bozos."  
  
[You mean you were just toying with everyone else? Sheesh. Time to change the subject.]  
  
"So how're things there in Okinawa?"  
  
"Everything's great. How can I complain? Water, sun and a pace a lot less hectic than Tokyo."  
  
"Cool. Touchy subject Yoshikawa, but I have to ask. Heard from Anko yet?"  
  
Noboru sighed and took a few seconds to respond.  
  
"Nah. Nothing really substantial aside from the letters I get on birthdays and holidays. My gut's telling me something's going to happen soon though. I can feel it."  
  
They had talked about this often. Uehara Anko and her self-imposed 'exile.' To be completely honest, Kikuchi thought that his friend deserved much better, and made it a point to tell him. Yoshikawa however insisted that he wasn't putting the rest of his romantic life on hold, and that in a manner of speaking, his waiting was more of a 'passive' nature.  
  
"How long has it been again buddy? Five, six years since she left? That's a long time to wait my friend." [You poor bastard.]  
  
"I know. But a man has to follow what his gut tells him to, know what I mean?"  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Anyway it's getting late Kikuchi, not to mention that there's no one left to fight. I got to split. I have a 9am dive."   
  
Yoshito checked the time: 3:10 AM  
  
"You're right. Have fun, great talking with you again."  
  
"Thanks. Same here. Ask her out okay? Let me know what happens. 'Night."  
  
"Yeah, will do. G'night Yoshikawa." Kikuchi replied one last time before thumbing his mobile to disconnect the call. He then logged off the game server, exited the program and shut his PC off. He glanced at the time again.   
  
"I wonder if she's awake."  
  
[Nah. 'Sides, real smooth move you're thinking of there, Don Juan. Wake 'em up in the middle of the night and ask 'em for a date. She'll definitely love that.]  
  
"Tomorrow then, or the day after that." Yoshito told himself before heading downstairs to get a snack.   
  
Meanwhile, back at the hotel, Urumi was still livid from her just-concluded nocturnal experience.  
  
"Stupid dream. I owe HIM?!??"  
  
Kanzaki, still shaken from the allusions her dream had just given her, turned to her best friend: rationale.  
  
(Pluralitas non est ponenda sine neccesitate.)*  
  
"Entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily."  
  
(Oh quit showing off, no one's around to hear you anyway.)  
  
She continued talking to herself.  
  
"All things being equal, the simplest explanation tends to be the right one."  
  
(Yeah, yeah. Ockham's Razor by William of Ockham, 14th Century. Most recently made popular by Carl Sagan in the film 'Contact.' Blah, blah, blah-blah.)  
  
"Ugh. Whose side are you on anyway?"  
  
(Spare me. You know whose. The only difference between you and me is that I'm not afraid to face up to facts.)  
  
"Facts?? What facts? All I have are non-proven hypotheses. I need more tangibles... less unknowns." She rambled.  
  
(Oh for fuck's sake. Don't waste OUR time with procrastinating arguments. Just what exactly are you looking for?)  
  
"Substantiation." An idea formed in her mind.  
  
(Go. Call him if you want. One less variable in the equation.)  
  
"Fine!! I will! Hold on. What time is it?"  
  
She groped for her watch on the bedside table.  
  
3:16 AM  
  
"What the hell. Let's see if he's home."  
  
She swung her legs over to the side of the bed and reached for the phone. Her fingers dialed the number effortlessly, the same way as if they had been doing so all these years. She pulled the receiver to her ear.   
  
Ring.  
  
"Answer the damn phone already. I just need to ask you something."  
  
Ring.  
  
"Hello? Onizuka residence." was the groggy response from the other end.  
  
"Hey teach, it's me."  
  
"Eh? Kanzaki? The hell?!? Do you know what time it is?" Onizuka growled.  
  
"Oh c'mon. You never complained before."  
  
"Idiot. That's because I knew you were in a different time zone."  
  
"I just wanted to ask you something."  
  
"Can't this wait 'till tomorrow? I might still be able to get back to my dream; I was in the middle of a threesome with two Azusas! Got it? Two!! One had a catwoman suit on, while the other was dressed like a French maid!"  
  
"Please? I need to know right now."  
  
She could hear him exaggerate a groan.   
  
"So much for that idea. Fine. Ask already. I swear I can't have any peace... the price of being such a great teacher..." he sighed.  
  
"Okay, I'll get straight to the point. Is Kikuchi... is he the kind of man who'd jump after me if I fell off the ledge of a building? Or a highway ramp?"  
  
Urumi heard her old teacher cough in surprise.  
  
"What kind of stupid question is that? You're losing your touch, Kanzaki. You woke me up for this crap? I'm in no mood for your pranks dammit..."  
  
"I just need to know right now if he's that kind of man." Urumi said half-asserting, half-pleading; clutching the receiver tightly as she spoke the words.  
  
Onizuka's change of tone signaled that she had successfully roused his interest.  
  
"Ooooohhh do I smell love in the air? So did you two finally go out? Did he give you a piece of the madness?" he asked lecherously.  
  
"Teacher, please. This is important to me. I have to know."  
  
Eikichi recognized the earnestness in his old student's voice. He went silent for a few seconds, then sighed.  
  
"You're actually serious about this, aren't you, Urumi?   
  
"I am."  
  
"Very well. Yes and no."  
  
"Huh? What do you mean, yes and no?"  
  
"Yes, if you fell off the edge of a building, or ramp, or whatever, he would most certainly risk his life and jump after you. ESPECIALLY after YOU, Kanzaki Urumi. And no, because he's also the kind of man who'd make sure that you'd never fall off or jump in the first place. He'd never allow it to get that far."  
  
Kanzaki was silent.  
  
(He would...)  
  
"Urumi? Did I answer your question?"  
  
"Yes... you did. Thank you, teacher."  
  
"Hmph. Hah, anytime for an old student. Damn crazy kids, you two should've just hooked up years ago and spared me the drama. Anything else you wanna know? Porno favorites? Lingerie preferences? Weird fetishes?"  
  
She couldn't help but giggle.  
  
(Could be useful.)  
  
"No thanks. I think I'll pass on those for the moment 'teach."  
  
"Good. Now go get some sleep, miss genius. G'night."  
  
"Thanks again. 'Night."  
  
Click.  
  
Kanzaki replaced the receiver and clung to her pillow once more, tighter this time. She still had trouble accepting what had just transpired, which in this case resulted in her maintaining her reactionary self-denial.  
  
"Stupid dream."  
  
(You already said that.)  
  
"So what the hell am I supposed to do now?"  
  
(Psh. Supposed to do my ass. You know what you WANT to do Urumi.)  
  
"Bitch."  
  
(Ah, degenerative name-calling. Quite the mark of the uber genius I see.)  
  
Kanzaki buried her face in her pillow again.  
  
"Argh. I hate you."  
  
(Yeah sure, whatever. What about him?)  
  
"Nngggrrrfff."  
  
(That was in what language? Definitely not French, nor Latin neither, nor Manda...)  
  
"All right!!! Shut up already! I'll mull it over the morning!"  
  
(Good girl.)  
  
"Now let me sleep already." Urumi said, exasperated as she sprawled face-up on her bed and smothered herself with her pillow.  
  
(Of course. Sweet dreams, Kanzaki Urumi.)  
  
Her last thought before drifting off to sleep was the recollection of Kikuchi leaving after their recent lunch date.  
  
"Hey now, when did I ever let you down?"  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
A/N:  
  
Yojimbo: non-playable, summon-able character in Squaresoft's Final Fantasy series  
  
Keyser Soze: Kevin Spacey's character in "The Usual Suspects"  
  
MechWarrior: a popular game series set in the 31st century BattleTech universe, with huge humanoid war machines called BattleMechs (or for short, Mechs) set as the preferred method of warfare. Several Mechwarrior titles have already been out as of 2003.  
  
LRMs: Long-Range Missiles  
  
Gauss Rifle: A large long-ranged weapon used by BattleMechs to kick the crap out of each other. Theoretically uses magnets placed along the inside of the gun's barrel to accelerate the projectile. I COULD be mistaken, but I heard that the smallest Gauss Rifle-type weapons we have today are mounted on battleships. Like I said, I could be wrong.  
  
PPC: Particle Projection Cannon. Technically not a laser, but more or less used and shoots like one. Always described as shooting "blue lightning" in the MechWarrior universe.  
  
Assault Class: 85-100 ton Mechs.  
  
Heavy Class: 60-80 ton Mechs.  
  
Medium Class: 40-60 ton Mechs.  
  
Longbow, Kodiak, Atlas and Masakari: All assault-class BatleMechs.  
  
TimberWolf: Popular heavy-class Mech.  
  
To all of you who aren't familiar with the MechWarrior games, apologies if the story got a little too technical. And to those who are familiar with it, sorry if I didn't get technical enough. =P  
  
* Pluralitas non est ponenda sine neccesitate = Original latin version of "Entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily." "All things being equal, the simplest explanation tends to be the right one." is the simple, layman's version of it. =)  
  
Again, thanks to everyone who took the time out to R&R: Cattleya Glory, Prizz, Chris Lightfellow, Allence of the Weed, Scarlet, mikethebigW, Seth7, GreatLight432, Darkfusion, and Luna Stop Swearing.  
  
Cattleya Glory, Chris Lightfellow, Allence of the Weed, Seth7 and DarkFusion: I really appreciate the comments!! I watch and re-watch the referred episodes of GTO just to make sure I get the facts right. I'd love to get my hands on the manga since I've only read summaries of it on the net, but they cost a pretty penny. So I'll stick to the anime for the time being =)  
  
Prizz and Scarlet: Sorry about that, couldn't help it. In my own limited experience, dreams are seldom, if ever crystal clear in their own vague "wisdom." I'm sure practically everyone has had a vivid one where everything was so easily followed and understood while in it but confusing once thought up again awake. Glad you liked it anyway!  
  
Greatlight432 and mikethebigW: The damn midnight oil's been burning I tell ya. Let's see what else sleep deprivation can contribute for the next few chapters, heh. Thanks again for the props!  
  
Luna Stop Swearing: Domo! But seriously now, we all got our own writing styles, I doubt I could ever come up with half the fun stuff you do =) Have fun in Beijing!  
  
'Till the next chapter!  
  
** 21 April 2004 - Chapter5 redone and A/N updated so as to comply with fanfiction.net's content guidelines regarding chat or keyboard dialogues.  
  
-MA- 


	6. If You Have to Ask

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
[ ] = Kikuchi's thoughts  
  
( ) = Kanzaki's thoughts  
  
  
  
Chapter VI - If You Have to Ask...  
  
Ever since that talk he had with Yoshikawa two nights ago, Kikuchi had seriously started exploring the possibilities of him and Urumi actually getting together in his mind. It was actually all workable now, he thought. Closing his eyes, he recalled the way she felt in his arms in their all-too brief embrace.  
  
[Have to admit, that felt good. Felt... right, even.] He then remembered the way she had reached up and gave him a quick, innocent peck on the cheek. If she only knew how much that small, intimate moment had occupied his waking thoughts, he'd be in a whole lot of trouble.  
  
"Blergh. Damn hormones."  
  
[Still, the way she looked and smelled when she drew in... think about it... you were only inches away from kissing her full on the lips... or nuzzling her neck and breathing her scent in. With that, I guess we could forgive the whole thing with the coffee right?]  
  
Kikuchi slapped his forehead. If there was ONE thing he hated about being male, overpowering, hormone-induced instinctual desire was it. Turning to face his reflection in his bedroom mirror, he started psyching himself.  
  
[It's time. You can do this. You can pull this off. Call her. Don't forget: clear head, calm demeanor, laidback disposition. Smooth. Remember, THAT is what made you the man you are, and THAT is the same thing that'll win this.] Teeming with resolve, Kikuchi reached for his mobile and punched in Kanzaki's number. Pausing one last time before the point of no return, he pushed the button and made the call, bringing the phone to his ear. He heard the call try to connect, his anticipation building with the thought of hearing Urumi's voice any second now.  
  
Much to his disappointment however, it only kept ringing. He tried waiting for her to answer for another ten seconds, but finally cancelled the call and pocketed his cell.  
  
"Damn it." Kikuchi muttered to himself. He had decided that the simplest way to get Urumi to agree on a night out would be to exude confidence, forego any hoopla and simply ASK her. That had been the plan. Unfortunately as the saying goes, no plan survives the first encounter intact, which in this case meant Kanzaki not being around to answer her mobile. Wracking his head for a plan B, Yoshito took his phone out again.  
  
[Good idea. This way, we take some of the pressure off of me.]  
  
That same afternoon, finishing the workday week, Kanzaki found herself on the way back to her hotel. Urumi stared obliviously out the taxicab's window, her thoughts centered on the message Kikuchi had left in her phone's voicemail, and of her dream a few nights back. She had gone to a lunch meeting with a representative of Mishima Holdings and as precautionary politeness dictated, had set her cellular to silent. Checking it after business was concluded, she discovered Kikuchi's name on the 'Missed Call' list. Figuring that he would've probably (hopefully?) left her a message, she then opened her voicemail inbox. Her heart almost skipped a beat when she found out that she was spot on.  
  
"Ey Kanzaki, it's me Kikuchi. Just wanted to say hi and all. 'Guess you're pretty busy right now. I'll just give you a call later tonight okay? Take care."  
  
Lost in her thoughts, she was jolted back to reality by the cab driver's voice.  
  
"M'am? We're here."  
  
"Huh? Ahh okay." She replied as she paid the fare and handed the cabbie a few extra bills as a tip before getting off. Thanking her, he went on his way.  
  
Urumi walked straight to the hotel elevators, the greetings of the staff not really registering in her mind. She immediately found one waiting, entered it and pushed the button for her floor. The background hum of the winch mechanisms barely audible, her thoughts drifted once more.  
  
(I wonder why he called? Maybe... was he gonna ask me out?) she speculated, unsuccessfully repressing a smile at the idea.  
  
"Ugh. I'm pathetic." She said to herself, snapping out of it. Urumi then turned her attention to the lit 14th floor button and pushed it some more, even though she obviously knew doing so didn't really expedite the process.  
  
"One stupid dream and I'm flighty as a little schoolgirl. Its just Kikuchi for crying out loud."  
  
(Uh-huh. If it's JUST Kikuchi, then why are you so...)  
  
"Okay, stop right there. We're not doing this again." obviously referring to the extended argumentation exercise with herself the other night.  
  
A soft chime signaled that the lift had arrived at her floor.  
  
"Finally."  
  
(Maybe I should call him instead.) she thought, stepping out into the 14th floor hallway and heading towards her room.  
  
Hours pass till much later, each in their respective bedrooms, Kanzaki and Kikuchi eyed their mobiles.  
  
[Do it. Call her. You said you would.]  
  
(No time to chickenshit Urumi. Show some interest and meet him halfway. Call him.)  
  
[Ask her out. Take control of the situation. Be the man!]  
  
(Ask him out. Be forward! Know what you want and go for it!)  
  
They stared at the business cards that they had given each other at their parting the week before. Looking at them for the past half-hour has had them inadvertently memorizing each other's numbers.  
  
[If you don't call her after hitting her with that 'I prefer your natural eye colors' comment last week, you're dumber than Onizuka.]  
  
(You're nothing but a tease if you don't call him up after that 'marry me' crap you pulled.)  
  
[What the hell is the matter with you? It's not like you haven't dated other women before. Man up. Remember, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.]  
  
(Hello! Earth to Urumi!! It's not like you haven't played this cat and mouse game before. Just do it already, give him a little something for now, reel him in when he's hooked!)  
  
[Remember: charm.]  
  
(Don't forget: flirt.)  
  
That same moment in another part of town, oblivious to the brewing battle of wills, a family very familiar with both individuals gets together for some after-dinner conversation.  
  
"So those two are finally getting together?" Azusa asked, looking at her husband while cradling her son in her arms.  
  
"Nothing certain, but I'm willing to bet on it." Eikichi replied while making faces at his little boy.  
  
"Isn't Urumi a little too, um, unpredictable for Yoshito though?"  
  
"That's exactly what I'm banking on, the whole opposites attracting thing. Case in point: us." Onizuka gestured at the both of them. Shifting his gaze to the child cooing in his wife's arms, he added:  
  
"Isn't that right little man? If daddy weren't so handsome and strong mommy wouldn't have married him huh?"  
  
"Silly. What I meant was that isn't she too headstrong for him?" Azusa replied, smiling.  
  
Onizuka scratched the stubble on his chin.  
  
"Kanzaki is a strong woman, too strong for most men no doubt about it. That's why the only kind of man who'll be right for her would be someone as strong, if not stronger; someone who could keep up with her, though be nowhere near as combustible as she is."  
  
"Like Kikuchi."  
  
"Exactly. Like you said, Kanzaki's still somewhat unpredictable, even though she's matured with the years. That kid Yoshito would be ideal for her I think, being someone who could temper her volatile nature with his own distinct level-headedness; though by no means is he a pushover, or she'd eat him alive. 'Sides, those two have been gravitating towards each other since their Seirin days, it's just now that they're realizing it. Not without a little help from me of course, their great teacher."  
  
"Uh-huh, and what exactly did the great teacher do this time?" she asked, playing along for now.  
  
"Not much really, just setting the ball in motion and making sure it keeps rolling long enough for them to figure how to do it by themselves. Urumi called in the middle of the night about two or three days ago, and genius that she is, asked me if our little Romeo was the type of man who'd dive after her if she fell of a building."  
  
"Really? Wow. Was she all right? What'd you tell her?"  
  
"She sounded a little groggy, so I'm guessing she had a wet dream. Anyway I told her exactly what she needed to hear. Yoshito on the other hand recounted to me while we were having ramen last week that he'd already had eyes for our genius Juliet since their junior high days together; only he didn't do anything about it because she was in his words, 'nuts' back then. So I persuaded him to look her up. Remember when I got home a little late last week? That was it."  
  
"You mean when you said that you couldn't come visit with my parents because you had to coach an extended Karate practice? Somehow you forgot to mention that part about dinner with him."  
  
Onizuka gulped and shot his son another glance.  
  
"Listen babyboy, this is how a REAL man should take responsibility for his actions."  
  
Back in her hotel room, Kanzaki Urumi finds herself acting on uncertain resolve to make a return call.  
  
(Okay Urumi, let's call him now.) Kanzaki thought to herself, reaching for her phone. Getting ready to dial Kikuchi's number, she was interrupted by her mobile ringing and vibrating in her hand. Glancing at the name flashing on the screen, it read: Kikuchi Yoshito. Clearing her throat and taking a deep breath, she pushed 'Answer.'  
  
(Here goes nothing.)  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Kanzaki? Hi there, it's me, Kikuchi. Did you get my message?"  
  
"Hey there! I was just about to call you. Yeah I did, sorry I wasn't able to pick up, I was in a meeting and..."  
  
"It's cool. Don't worry about it."  
  
(Good. Flirt. Now.)  
  
"So to what do I owe the pleasure of this call, Mr. Kikuchi Yoshito? Miss me?"  
  
Yoshito laughed.  
  
[Playful as ever. Let the games begin then.]  
  
"Is that a loaded question miss?"  
  
(Decent comeback.)  
  
"Depends on how you answer it."  
  
"In that case, I hereby invoke my right to remain silent regarding the matter."  
  
(Darn.)  
  
"Anyway..." Yoshito cleared his throat.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I was just wondering... doing anything tomorrow? I was wondering if you'd like to go out."  
  
Upon hearing this, Urumi broke into a wide, stretched from ear-to-ear smile while her heart thumped loudly in her chest. Keeping in with the game though, she feigned a surprised gasp.  
  
"My oh my Kikuchi, are you asking me out on a date?" Urumi teased.  
  
[Nice try, not falling for this one. JUST ANSWER THE QUESTION WILL YOU???]  
  
"I didn't think it could get any more obvious than this, Kanzaki." He replied drolly.  
  
"Awww you're no fun."  
  
[Fine, MAKE her answer it then.]  
  
"How can you say that when you haven't even said yes yet? Don't knock it 'till you've tried it sweetheart." He countered jokingly.  
  
(Ooohh he's flirting baaack...) Kanzaki thought, feeling all the more giddy.  
  
"Haha. Yes. I'd love to go out with you Kikuchi. What do you have in mind?"  
  
(You'd LOVE to? Easy with the 'L' word.)  
  
[Phew. Mission accomplished.]  
  
"How about we meet up at Inokashira park around 5pm and take it from there?"  
  
"5pm sounds good. Where exactly though?  
  
"Remember that old bench beside the lake?"  
  
(How could I forget? That was where you took me after I blackmailed Onizuka to get me sweets all the way from Nagoya. Heh, good times.)  
  
"Of course. 5pm at the 'ol lakeside bench it is then."  
  
"Cool. It's a date then. Take care in the meantime all right?"  
  
"Certainly. You too y'hear? See ya."  
  
[Now one last jab before I go.]  
  
"Oh yeah, one more thing."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Leave the snakes."  
  
Urumi chuckled.  
  
"But, but... what if you were to take advantage of me?" Urumi responded in that sweet, endearing tone of hers.  
  
[You're so cute when you do that.]  
  
"Then I'm sure you'd have no problems coming up with a way to make me spill hot coffee all over myself." Yoshito replied.  
  
"Haha. Smartass."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. Take care all right? Bye!"  
  
"Bye."  
  
Kikuchi thumbed 'Disconnect' and slowly set his mobile on his desk to focus on his breathing. He set his eyes on the clock and placed two fingers under his jawline, checking his pulse.  
  
[Bad hormones, bad hormones!! Slow down, it's over. She said yes already.]  
  
Over the course of the next sixty seconds, Yoshito willed his pulse and blood pressure to subside to normal levels. This was when he noticed that he was sweating.  
  
[Great. How the hell am I supposed to be cool and confident if a single two-minute phone call already has me sweating like a pig?]  
  
Urumi on the other hand was giddy like a schoolgirl. She grabbed her pillow, leaned back on her bed, buried her face in it and wrapped her arms around it; all the while kicking her legs in the air.  
  
"He asked me out!" she squealed in delight.  
  
(And you didn't even have to call him. Now, when you're done celebrating, let's start focusing on knocking his socks off okay?)  
  
That stopped her mid-revelry. Peeking out from over the pillow, she bit her lip and said to herself:  
  
"Now what the hell am I gonna wear?"  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
A/N:  
  
Thanks to everyone who took the time out to read and review: Jon-Uriel-Kaden, animegeek1001, Allence of the Weed, Seth7, mikethebigW, Prizz, Cattleya Glory, mingtsai, Dargon Sheinto, duh-hikki-zealot, and Rijuji.Raicho!  
  
Jon-Uriel-Kaden, animegeek1001, Prizz, duh-hikki-zealot: Great to hear you're enjoying the story! Hopefully as much as I am writing it. Stay tuned! There's more on the way. And I'd wager to say that there's a possibility the next one (or the one after that) could be more... um, "intimate." COULD be. I'm still debating with myself how to work that in.  
  
Seth7, Cattleya Glory, mingtsai: Good to hear you liked Onizuka's dream =) You gotta love the way his mind works. Oh and I definitely plan to take it to the next level (or I wouldn't really be writing this) =P Thanks for the great comments!  
  
Allence of the Weed: Thanks for the kind words, my bad if I wasn't able to explain the Latin phrase the first time I posted the chapter. Glad you liked it!  
  
MikethebigW: re the dirty old man thing. I couldn't agree more. I think that Onizuka stopped maturing at about say... 17 or 18 yrs of age. Reminds me of myself. Heh. Oyea, sorry if the 5 or 6 years comment by Kikuchi to Yoshikawa in chapter5 threw you off; he meant that it's been 5 or 6 years since Uehara Anko left Yoshikawa and went on her self-imposed exile. The story itself is set around 10ish years from the end of the anime.  
  
Dargon Sheinto: Yea I've read summaries of the manga on the net. Shame they didn't work a couple more of the storylines into the anime. But I THINK that they purposely left the anime more open-ended, maybe for the possibility of an OAV? Hmmmm...  
  
Riyuji_Raicho: Glad you liked the dream sequence in chapter 4. Hope you also got to see the original chap5 before I had to redo it. Thanks for the props!  
  
Till the next chapter! Ja ne =) 


	7. One Step Backward, Two Steps Forward

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
[ ] = Kikuchi's thoughts  
  
( ) = Kanzaki's thoughts  
  
[( )] = Collective thoughts  
  
Quick Note: Murphy's Law basically states that if anything can go wrong, it will.  
  
  
  
Chapter VII - One Step Backward, Two Steps Forward  
  
Kanzaki rummaged through her closet.  
  
"Dammit I should've anticipated this... need more clothes... should've gone shopping when I had the chance... but nooo..." Urumi muttered to herself, desperately looking for something nice to wear. Apparently, the combination of the date's short notice and a minor work emergency earlier that morning afforded her a lot less time than she was comfortable with to prepare for a date with Kikuchi.  
  
"Of all the times Murphy's Law had to rear its stupid head..." she continued, shuffling and re-shuffling back hangers upon hangers of mostly black and charcoal gray business suits, the occasional pair of denims peeking out now and then. Her efforts getting her nowhere, the wheels in her head turned some more.  
  
(This isn't gonna work. All you've got here are business suits and casual wear. Nothing remotely resembling knock-his-socks-off datewear.) she thought. Exasperation getting the better of her, Urumi slumped back on her bed. Narrowing her eyes and massaging her temples with her fingers, she wracked her brain in growing anxiety.  
  
(Mmmkay, no options left. I was hoping for something along the lines of what I wore the first time I met Onizuka... but I guess we have to go with what we have. Good thing Kikuchi wants to meet in the park, so that's as casual as it gets. Hmm, we'll just have to put the flirting into overdrive if we want to get his blood running.) Standing and walking back to her closet, she reached in and threw some promising articles of clothing back over her shoulder onto the bed. Turning around and inspecting what she had to work with, she put her face in her hand and sighed.  
  
(Oh the humanity of it all. Might as well get a little creative and go one notch over the girl-next-door look. Subdued sexuality it is then.) Biting her lower lip, Kanzaki ran a simulation in her mind.  
  
(Button the blouse down a tad more than usual to show just enough cleavage to stir his imagination a bit; use black... no, dark lavender underwear for that. Dark blue semi-lowrider bootleg jeans, just low enough to catch his attention... tight where it counts; accentuate the hips and showcase the bum. Finish off with a handsome pair of brown leather boots, paired with a non-too showy same-hued belt with a good-looking buckle. Jacket? Nah, let's see if he'll lend me his if he sees me shivering.)  
  
Turning to her mirror, Urumi cocked her head to study her hair and features, trying to picture the best way to doll herself up to match the clothes she had selected. Reaching back to bundle her hair in a makeshift ponytail, she turned and checked her profile.  
  
(Ponytail? No, too ordinary. Pigtails? Yikes, not unless he was a perv like Onizuka. Aaaahh! Wear it down them, just clip it inconspicuously to make sure it doesn't blow all over your face when the wind decides to pick up. VERY light makeup, though don't forget to accentuate the lips... since he obviously liked looking at them last time. The eyes too, so no colored contacts. Simple white gold necklace and stud earrings. Top off with a metal finish watch to match the jewelry.)  
  
"Yeah. That should work. Let's do it."  
  
Later that afternoon, Kikuchi found himself sitting on a very familiar bench in Inokashira Park. Closing his eyes and taking a long, deep breath, he reveled as the park's fresh air scented of flowers and freshly cut grass. Body and mind now totally relaxed, Yoshito stretched himself out and leaned fully on the bench's backrest, trying to recall what happened between him and Urumi in this exact same place ten years ago. Like clockwork, the memories came. Welcoming them, he smiled as the decade-old scene replayed itself in his mind.   
  
"He what?"  
  
"Yup. Guess what Onizuka did then."  
  
"He must've jumped down to save you."  
  
"Yeah. He did."  
  
"I told you, he's different from the other teachers."  
  
[You were one crazy little girl Urumi. Making our teacher jump through hoops like that. Though I do owe you for that delicious toro you blackmailed him to treat us to, there's no way in hell I'm that easy sweetheart. I have to admit, you're as cute and adorable as much as you ever were... well to be honest even more so now, so let's just see who makes who jump through which hoop, shall we?] he thought, smirking at the idea of more mental sparring to come.  
  
Opening his eyes, Kikuchi checked the time: 4:51 PM.   
  
[Soon.]  
  
A shrill, high-pitched giggle suddenly distracting the fond reminiscing, Yoshito opened his eyes and tried to locate the source of the voice. Turning his head till he found the cause, he spots two kids playing tag in the near distance. Brothers it seemed, spending the weekend in the park, playing close to the water. Nearby, a couple who looked to be the boys' parents watched over them as they enjoyed their day together.  
  
[Heh, how picturesque. Family day out in the park. Best things in life are free I tell you...]  
  
Unfortunately, the new scene triggers another lot of memories, this time stemming from even farther back than his days with Kanzaki in Seirin.  
  
[Brothers. Inokashira Park... Inokashira pond. That morning I found out was just like this one, cloudy and a tad nippy...] The involuntary recollections hitting him like a ton of bricks, Kikuchi clenched his teeth, set his glasses aside and covered his face in his hands, grimacing. In his mind's eye, he saw once again the newspaper headline that fateful morning.  
  
'Youth found dead by Inokashira pond.'  
  
"Stop it! Not now..." Kikuchi whispered, burying his face deeper in his hands, fighting to keep control. Word for word, he remembered the other portions of the article.  
  
'ID found on the body identifies the victim as Kikuchi Akio, aged 14, a Kichijoji local. Next of kin has been notified as of this morning. Contacts within the police department disclosed under condition of anonymity that early evidence strongly suggests suicide, though investigators are still looking into the possibility of foul play being involved.'  
  
[Akio 'niisan... I'm so sorry. I should've seen it coming. Some brother I turned out to be...] Yoshito thought, his consciousness lost in the seldom-explored recesses of his memories. The sensation of two hands reaching around from behind him and covering his eyes jolted Kikuchi back to the present.  
  
"Guess who!"  
  
[What? Urumi...] Still reeling from the unanticipated recollections, Yoshito, not really thinking, instinctively reached up and clutched on to the hands covering his eyes, holding them in the way a terrified child held on to a parent's hand for support and reassurance that everything was okay.  
  
[Can't let you see me like this... just a few seconds while I... get myself in order.] he struggled, willing himself to put his game face on.  
  
Kanzaki's eyes widened in surprise. (He's shaking, trembling!!) Displaying an uncharacteristic agility, Urumi hopped over the bench's backrest and landed by his side, her hands now intertwined with his.  
  
"Yoshito! Yoshito!! What's wrong? Talk to me!" she asked him tersely, the gravity of the situation making her forget to address him by his last name.  
  
Kikuchi winced. He desperately wanted to tell her everything. Why Kikuchi Yoshito was the man he was; his unflinching level-headedness and stone-calm demeanor even in their junior high days. Why he never made a big deal out of being a genius, why he had a soft spot for Yoshikawa Noboru, and why he kept an eye out for her... all the why's that had shaped and burdened this man for the majority of his life threatened for the first time in years to break through his walls and overwhelm him. Walls that he made to keep things in, and not to keep people out.  
  
[NO. Show no weakness. You are Kikuchi Yoshito. You cannot, you WILL NOT be weak in front of anybody, especially her.]  
  
"Yoshito!! What's wrong?!?? Tell me!!!" Kanzaki continued, half-screaming as she continued to grip his hands ever so tightly.  
  
[You. Are. Fine. NOW.] That was all he needed. Kikuchi took one last deep breath before finally opening his eyes. He then shot Urumi with a 'made-you-look' grin.  
  
"Gotcha. Nervous there for a moment weren't you?" he finally said, putting his glasses back on.  
  
Urumi was incredulous.  
  
(You... BASTARD!)  
  
"You jerk!!! That wasn't funny! I thought something was really wrong with you, aside from just being an asshole, ASSHOLE!" She immediately countered, snatching her hands back from Kikuchi's grasp.  
  
[Ouch. Of all the times for a goddamn flashback... Murphy's Law piece of shit...]  
  
"Aww come now, can't you take a joke? Off all people I'd expect you to appreciate a good one."  
  
"Bah." She countered staring straight ahead, the spite in her tone evident.  
  
"You look great by the way; it's nice that you didn't wear colored contacts."  
  
"..." Urumi half-turned, her body language threatening to stand and walk away.  
  
[DAMN IT.]  
  
"Okay I get the point, I'm sorry Kanza..." Stopping himself and clearing his throat, he tried placating her again, this time addressing her by her first name, and injecting as much sincerity as he could in it.  
  
"Urumi, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have played with your feelings like that. Please, at least sit with me for a while? It'd be a shame to waste such a beautiful day in the park."  
  
(Damn straight you played with my feelings. God I must've looked like such an idiot. Maybe this date wasn't such a good idea...) Still miffed at her genuine show of concern being all for naught, Urumi crossed her arms and legs, at the same time looked AWAY from Yoshito. In every aspect the classic body posture indicating 'you're not my favorite person right now.'  
  
[Argh. Desperate times, desperate measures.]  
  
"Thank you for your concern. Really. I mean it. I didn't know you'd react so strongly; I won't do that again. Swear to God."  
  
"Yeah whatever. Look I've had a really crappy week and if you're planning on capping it off with your lame idea of a..." Kikuchi leaning over and planting a small kiss on her temple interrupted Urumi. Almost instantly, Kanzaki felt her irritation evaporate and her momentum stagger; her cheeks blushing from the totally unexpected gesture of affection.  
  
(Whoa... that felt nice... @$#&*?!? Oh no, NO NO NO. You're not getting off THAT easy mister). Mentally shutting out the warm and fuzzy feelings the peck gave her, she turned to face him. Kanzaki was about to launch another diatribe when the sight of glistening sweat on Kikuchi's forehead and neck stopped her in her tracks. At once, millions upon millions of brain synapses fired in Urumi's head, analyzing in seconds the ramifications of what she saw before her.  
  
(Wait, the weather isn't particularly warm... overcast skies and quite chilly actually... so why the hell is he sweating like it was a hot summer's day? Maybe... maybe his bluff wasn't really a bluff? And that he just came up with that half-assed joke to throw me off? In that case, what was really wrong with him?)  
  
She looked him straight in the eyes.  
  
"Are you REALLY okay?"  
  
"Don't be silly. Of course I am." He replied, grinning.  
  
"Dork. Don't joke around like that."  
  
"Yes m'am. No more bad jokes, promise." Kikuchi traced an X over his heart and held up his right hand.  
  
Urumi nudged him gently in the ribs and grinned back.  
  
(You're off the hook for the meantime, mystery man... now what the hell was going on in that head of yours back there I wonder? Ah well, plenty of time for that later.)  
  
"So, what're we doing today?"  
  
"I was thinking we'd..."  
  
Drop.  
  
[(Huh?)]  
  
Another drop.  
  
Simultaneously, Yoshito and Urumi craned their necks skyward.  
  
"Great. Now it's raining. Murphy's Law again. Unbelievable." Kikuchi reacted.  
  
"Hurry, let's make a run for it. My old house is pretty near." He immediately added, instinctively grabbing her by the wrist whilst standing up to leave. Kanzaki however, had other things in mind.  
  
"We don't have to hurry. Come now, how long's it been since you've taken a stroll in the rain? We've got what's left of the day and evening together, so might as well enjoy it right? Relax, Yoshito." She replied, smiling.  
  
Kikuchi laughed. The rain was starting to pick up, a mere matter of seconds before it inevitably turned into a full-fledged shower.   
  
[We'll be soaked. Heh, this could be fun.] he thought, realizing how this could turn out to be a good thing after all.  
  
"Silly girl. You're right though, we should just relax and have fun. However, I don't like the idea of either of us catching a cold, so how about we stroll in the general direction of my place? That way, if this doesn't let up anytime soon, I won't have to worry about you freezing your cute little butt off in the street miss Kanzaki Urumi."  
  
(Hee-hee. Then when we get there you could keep me warm with your body heat.) Kanzaki thought, the sensation of the kiss still fresh in her head.  
  
"Haha, though a valid point, I have to say that you the tendency to think too much, mister Kikuchi Yoshito."  
  
[Oh, you have no idea my dear.]  
  
"This coming from the genius extraordinaire? You flatter me to no end. Shall we then?" Yoshito asked her, standing up and offering his hand out for her to take.  
  
"Yessirree!" she replied half-giggling, taking his hand and getting up from the bench. The rain was falling steadily now, easily drenching the both of them in scant minutes.  
  
Yoshito and Urumi held hands and walked their troubles off in the rain, chatting away happily amidst the downpour and seeming to the outside world like another blissful couple taking a stroll in the park. Mind games were forgotten for the time being, an unforeseen benefit resulting from Kikuchi's unexpected 'episode;' thereby also allowing each other's subconscious to take a step of faith and begin opening their heart to the other. They talked about anything and everything a normal couple did in their position... from their past together in Seirin to Onizuka's antics to what they did for the week. As for genius-level topics, from the hidden messages in Leonardo da Vinci's art to the mathematics inherent in Beethoven's work, those could wait for now.  
  
Finally arriving at their destination, Kikuchi noticed that Kanzaki had wrapped her arms around herself, slightly shivering from the chill her drenched clothes gave her. Quietly chiding himself for not bringing a jacket along [a lot of good it would've done anyway], he did his best to ignore the way her wet clothes clung to her figure and how it caused his mind to wander.  
  
[Oh what the hell.]  
  
"You poor thing, c'mere." Yoshito said as he pulled Urumi closer and wrapped his arms around her, sharing the warmth his body radiated. Urumi closed her eyes and allowed herself to enjoy the intimacy, returning Kikuchi's embrace. An uncounted number of moments passing, they finally drew back, looking into each other's eyes. Lost in the moment, Kikuchi spoke up.  
  
"Have I told you that you have beautiful eyes?"  
  
Urumi chuckled.  
  
"No, never in such a straightforward manner anyway."  
  
Yoshito smiled sheepishly and looked down, embarrassment getting the better of him. Kanzaki then reached up and guided his chin with her hand until they were staring eye to eye again, and admonished him.  
  
"Now who's being silly? I like it better this way."  
  
[In that case...] he thought while placing his hand on the small of her back.  
  
Kikuchi leaned in ever so slowly and Urumi, understanding perfectly, looked up towards him and closed her eyes.   
  
For the next few moments, time stood still.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
The way Murphy's Law is referred to in this chapter is actually the more popular, contemporary version of it, sometimes called Finagle's Law. The original Murphy's Law goes:"If there are two or more ways to do something, and one of those ways can result in a catastrophe, then someone will do it."   
  
Whittling it down to the basics so as to apply to everything else (Murphy was a rocket-sled engineer), Murphy's Law basically became what it is today: If anything can go wrong, it will.  
  
Thanks to everyone who took the time out to R&R: Seth7, Allence of the Weed, 99, mikethebigW, GreatLight432, Reika, Dargon Sheinto, sq1993, Prizz, Christ Lightfellow, SILENT TROWA, and rabid lola.  
  
Allence of the Weed, Reika, Prizz: Again, thanks for the kind words! I think I'll be at least writing a few more after this one. There's still alot of GTO running around in my head, and I won't be able to get any decent sleep unless I get to write em all down.  
  
99, Chris Lightfellow: Don't worry, I'm the type of fella who hates not being able to finish what he starts. Re the ending... all of us just have to wait and see... =P  
  
mikethebigW, GreatLight432: I've seen the KxK anime conversations countless times just to make sure I stay as faithful as I can to their characters. So much that I've spotted some bloopers the cartoonists overlooked i.e. in the episode where Onizuka takes Kanzaki in that ride of a lifetime, we see Fuyutsuki, Kikuchi, Murai, Fujiyoshi and Kusano giving chase in the Vice Principal's Cresta. First driving scene shows Kikuchi infront sitting beside Azusa, while 2nd one shows Murai getting out from the front after Eikichi rides the bike off the ramp. There's more, but they escape me at the moment. Heh. =) Glad to know you're still enjoying the story.  
  
Seth7, Dargon Sheinto, sq1993: I first thought of putting Onizuka in the chapter, but later decided against it, seeing as how any interference from him may just cause the two to become more defensive and less open to each other. Thanks for the reviews!  
  
SILENT TROWA: Glad you liked it! Doh, I never noticed that there was a 'standard' style used here. I should get out of the GTO section more =P  
  
rabid lola: What?!? You don't watch GTO? Blasphemy!!! =P Seriously now, and trust me on this one, this fic is _nothing_ compared to the original =) Check it out, and thanks for the great review!  
  
Stay tuned everyone, chapter8 coming soon.  
  
ja ne =) 


	8. Pillow Talk

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
[ ] = Kikuchi's thoughts  
  
( ) = Kanzaki's thoughts  
  
[( )] = Collective thoughts  
  
Warning: The first third of this chapter is mildly descriptive though still falls under the PG-13 guidelines of fanfic.net: i.e. "Rough or persistent violence is absent; sexually-oriented nudity is generally absent; some scenes of drug use may be seen; one use of the harsher sexually derived words may be heard." Those among you folks who aren't into that, just hit Ctrl-F (to search the page) and stick in "Gundam." Start from that paragraph =)  
  
Chapter VIII - Pillow Talk  
  
"You taste like strawberries." Kikuchi remarked, smiling as he broke the kiss and licked his lips. Apparently, this comment ushered in another round, one ALOT more passionate than before.  
  
"Mmmmm..." they murmured in near-unison as their hands, lips and tongues did their talking for them, the continuous sheet of rain on their skins adding to the sensuality of the moment. Kanzaki reached up and repeatedly clutched at her date's back, while Kikuchi gently cupped his high-school crush's head; one hand caressing her cheek and the other at her nape.  
  
[You're so beautiful.]  
  
(You feel so good.)  
  
Barely breaking the liplock, they clumsily made their way into the house: dripping rainwater all the way and making a beeline towards Kikuchi's bedroom; breaking one vase,  
  
"aww shit. whoops"  
  
nearly tripping thrice,  
  
"whoa! Easy..."  
  
and bumping into furniture more times than they could count.  
  
"oooh! Ouch!"  
  
They made it as far as the stairs. Collapsing, Kikuchi ended up on top of Urumi, their bodies entangled with each other's. Propping himself up on his arms, he looked straight into her twin blue and browns, while Kanzaki in turn reached up and took his glasses off, setting them aside on the edge of the step.  
  
(I want to see YOU.)  
  
Yoshito flashed a wry smile.  
  
"Sorry to disappoint, but mine are nowhere near as deep as yours."  
  
Leaning in, he added: "I wish I could swim in them."1  
  
(SIGH) Urumi blushed a deep crimson and grabbed him by the collar, intensely kissing him once more.  
  
"Mmmmffff"  
  
[Thank you Hollywood.1 Now I wonder...]  
  
Their little 'dance' continuing, Kikuchi started exploring; kissing and nibbling around her neck and ears, wondering if she was one of those people who were extremely sensitive in those areas. He didn't have to wait long for an answer as a sharp intake of breath accompanied by the arching of her back confirmed his hunch.  
  
(Baby...)  
  
[That's a good girl.]  
  
Finally, Yoshito spoke up.  
  
"We should get out of these wet clothes."  
  
Kanzaki cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"You might catch a cold, of course."  
  
[(Riiiight)]  
  
Slowly and deliberately, they started unbuttoning each other's shirts; him first, then her. The sight of a toned, glistening, rain-soaked chest and the view of pert breasts resting in soaked lavender brassiere released another rush of already-intoxicating hormones.  
  
[(Yowza.)]  
  
And so like two teenagers on prom night, they fooled around for the better part of two hours.2  
  
Later that evening, Kikuchi ransacked his mother's closet for something comfortable for Kanzaki to wear while her clothes dried in the bathroom, ending up with a pair of gray cotton drawstring pants and a simple white round neck shirt. He was tempted to throw in some Gundam T-shirt he got as a giveaway last Christmas, but decided against any sort of taunting for the moment, choosing instead to relish the newfound closeness they had just experienced. Their hormones having burned out for the time being, they cuddled together in silence, resting in each other's arms and reflecting on how the day's events could possibly affect or change anything and everything.  
  
"Penny for your thoughts."  
  
Yoshito glanced down at Urumi and smirked, again those eyes of hers seeming to gaze straight into him.   
  
"Nothing really. See, us normal geniuses still retain the capacity to turn off higher brain functions." he replied, teasing her.  
  
Kanzaki giggled.  
  
"Dork. Hey wait, so what time do your parents get home? Though I'm sure your mom and dad will remember me, I doubt they'll appreciate me reintroducing myself in this position."  
  
"Hmm? Oh they're still on their European tour. They won't be back till a week or two."  
  
Urumi pretended to gasp as the realization dawned on her.  
  
(Why you sneaky little...)  
  
"Oooohh you naughty, naughty little boy... you brought me here knowing that they weren't gonna be home!" She said, waving her finger and mock-scolding him.  
  
"Hey now, tell me straight up that you didn't particularly enjoy the outcome and I'll take you back to your hotel pronto." Kikuchi replied, grinning.  
  
(Heh, can't argue with that.)  
  
"Grrr. Geek."  
  
"Psycho."  
  
For both geniuses, it was a day of firsts. True, both had been in relationships before, but each had always known in advance that they were merely ill-considered attempts at living a normal life; half-hearted undertakings done so as to try and re-create for themselves some substitutionary semblance of normalcy. A normalcy that they always saw in the people around them, but never themselves quite experienced. This however, they both knew was totally different. As for once their hand contained too many wildcards for either of them to accurately calculate the outcome as they did with the others. Admittedly, the unknowns simultaneously proved intriguing and uncomfortable.  
  
Kanzaki continued to stroke back and forth across Kikuchi's chest, while he in turn played with her hair, twirling and re-twirling it around his fingers.  
  
"Yoshito, there's something I want to ask you."  
  
[Eh?]  
  
"Yes Urumi, though it's way too early in my opinion, I'd be willing to try a threesome with another woman in the future."  
  
(Very funny.) That comment earned Kikuchi a pinch to the gut.  
  
"I'm serious. Look, back at the park, right when I arrived and you were well... you know... it wasn't a lame joke. I'm pretty sure of it."  
  
[Stupid flashback.]  
  
"And how did you come to that conclusion?"  
  
(Do I have to spell it out?)  
  
"You were sweating like a pig Kikuchi. Which, in weather like this likely meant that you were in a state of agitation. The other possibility, that you gave me an Oscar-worthy performance, is pretty unlikely."  
  
[Damn this.] He knew she was onto him.  
  
"..."  
  
(Why does he keep dodging the question? Let's try another tactic.)  
  
"What was wrong back there? Hey c'mon, you know you can trust me right?" Urumi cooed; her brown and blues suddenly looking all misty and doe-eyed.  
  
This was getting difficult.  
  
"Right?"  
  
[Blergh. No fair, you're cheating.]  
  
"I know. But I'm asking you to trust me too. Look, both of us, you and me, we've all got our own things to deal with right?"  
  
(That's easy for you to say, you've been reading me like an open book since who knows when.)  
  
"Of course, but I want to get to know and understand you more, the same way that you already know so much about who I am and my past. I mean there's got to be more to Kikuchi Yoshito than the laidback, underachieving computer genius that he is."  
  
"I was under the impression that women liked the strong and silent type."  
  
Kanzaki narrowed her eyes and glared, her way of telling him to start taking this seriously.  
  
[Oh man.]  
  
"Look, we've all got our own issues Urumi. Myself included. Given time, you'll get to know more of me I promise, same way that I'll get to know more of you. Which means... one day you can tell me what happened with this."  
  
Kikuchi turned her hand over to reveal the scar on her wrist,3 the sight tugging at his protective instincts.  
  
"A reminder of my early, misspent youth is all." She replied, looking away.  
  
"True, but there's much, much more buried beneath the surface right? The how's and why's behind it."  
  
"Useless details."  
  
"Wrong. It's usually the minute specifics that give the bigger picture life. Take for example the Mona Lisa's smile, or the constellations in the night sky... or the color of your eyes. Urumi, trivialities are seldom really trivial, since usually it's the bigger picture that comes first, followed by an acute understanding and appreciation of the intricate details." Kikuchi continued, confident that his excellent line of reasoning would seal the argument. Kanzaki however, wasn't one to give up so easily.  
  
(Good stuff Yoshito. I have to admit, I never thought you'd be smooth as hell, but sorry, you lose this round.) she thought, preparing her coup de grace.4  
  
"You're right I guess. So, what's YOUR bigger picture?"  
  
[Oh... shit.] It dawned on Kikuchi that he had talked himself into a corner.  
  
"Well?"   
  
"This is different." Lame as it was, he had to try.  
  
"Bullshit. Not after that whole trivialities-and-the-bigger-picture garbage you just spouted."  
  
Yoshito sighed. [Maybe it IS time to trust once more. Taking that chance with Yoshikawa never made you regret it.]  
  
"Fine. But you have to promise, and I mean swear on all that you hold dear that you will never, EVER tell anyone else about this... or hint at, or anything along those lines. Understand? Not even Onizuka knows about this."  
  
"I promise. Trust me." Kanzaki said as she intertwined her fingers with his.  
  
Gathering his thoughts, Kikuchi closed his eyes and breathed deeply.  
  
"I... I lost someone close to me in Inokashira park, back when I was in elementary. Today just seemed to remind me."  
  
Urumi remained silent, the shock of Kikuchi's 'confession' leaving her at a complete loss for words. Finally, she came up with two.  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
"It's all right. I've pretty much dealt with those old demons."  
  
Kanzaki stretched up and kissed him soundly.  
  
"I had no idea. Sorry for prying." she apologized, now feeling sheepish from pressing the topic so hard.  
  
"Don't be. I wouldn't have told you if I didn't want to."  
  
She smiled. "Thanks for trusting me."  
  
"Mmmm-hmmm. That trust comes at a price though."  
  
"Uh-huh, sure. And that would be...?"  
  
"This!!!" With this Kikuchi wrapped his arms around her and rolled over, effectively reversing their positions, now leaving him on top. Choosing to exercise the dominance his placement afforded him, he started tickling her.  
  
"Aaaaaaahhhh!!!! Nooooo!!!! Not there!!! Stop!!! Aaaahhh!!! Anyplace but there!!!!" Urumi squealed in between fits of laughter, kicking her legs out without much effect. Yoshito on the other hand, had no intentions of stopping anytime soon.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
1 - this line was taken from some Hollywood movie that I seem unable to recall at the moment. Some film set in Italy I think.  
  
2 - No, they did not go "all the way."  
  
3 - From what I understand, according to the GTO manga, Urumi was the kind of person who'd slit her wrist just for kicks.  
  
4 - Coup de grace basically means final or finishing blow.  
  
'Gomen' to the regular readers that this update took longer than usual. I have about two chapters worth of text that I didn't use, since they just didn't feel too right. The version you see here is probably the 4th version of chapter8.  
  
Of course, many, many thanks again to those who took the time out to R&R: Seth7, SILENT TROWA, Millie-chan, Allence of the Weed, mikethebigW, sq1993, Prizz, Dargon Sheinto, Hermionini, Odd Tailor, rabid lola.  
  
Seth7: You were right on the money this time buddy.  
  
SILENT TROWA: I've got some plans for Yoshikawa. But that's another story. Oyea dude, I'm pretty sure of the PPC definition, I was a BattleTech and MechWarrior geek as well (still am, btw) =)  
  
Millie-chan: Glad you found it interesting!  
  
Allence of the Weed: I just played it by the numbers. I googled both Inokashira and Inogashira and came back with more hits from the Inokashira spelling... so I just used that one instead =P  
  
mikethebigW: Maybe it has something to do with myself being a huge Gibson fan. Heh. Anyway, no going for the kill... yet. Too soon for that methinks. Oh and great job you're doing with Behind the Mask. Keep the updates coming bro. Glad you still dig the story!  
  
sq1993: I THINK you got to read the corrupted version of chap7. I found that a few days after I uploaded it, it had a few lines missing at the end. Check it out. And don't worry, I've Kikuchi's 'issues' all figured out ;)  
  
Prizz: I hope this chapter answered your questions =P  
  
Dargon Sheinto, Hermionini: Personally, I've found that those are the best type of dates, where you just let things flow. So I couldn't help but stick that in here. Heh. Glad you folks liked it!  
  
Odd Tailor: It's something that just hit me when I questioned how the hell this guy could've been that laid back and in control at such a young age. I guess we'll never really find out, so I just had to make it up. Thanks for the props!  
  
rabid lola: No worries, I can understand taglish perfectly ;) And hell yeah Onizuka's a helluva cool guy. I wish I had a teacher like him back in high school too =)  
  
Stay tuned everyone! Till the next chapter!  
  
ja ne


	9. En Vino Veritas

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
[ ] = Kikuchi's thoughts  
  
Chapter IX - En Vino Veritas  
  
Kikuchi was buzzed. Not drunk mind you, but definitely getting there. It's been a little over a month since he and Kanzaki unofficially got together, and tonight he found himself sharing drinks with Onizuka back at the old Seirin roofdeck under the watchful eyes of the crescent moon, a half-dozen or so empty beercans littering the area at their feet.  
  
"Mmmmm.... it just tastes better and better. Where'd you get these imports again?" Eikichi asked, sipping his drink.  
  
"Told you it was good. Well my last client was so impressed with my work that he gave me a shitload of these. I knew there was no way in hell I could put a dent in the stock all by myself, so I figured you could lend a helping hand. By the way, where's Ryuji? I half-expected you to invite him along to sample this stuff."  
  
"I would've, but it's his and Nagisa's anniversary. So anyway, what's up with you and Urumi? You treating each other well?"  
  
[Not again.]  
  
"Yep."  
  
Unsatisfied with monosyllabic answers, Onizuka continued to press the issue. "Uh-huh. AND?"   
  
"And what?"  
  
"Can't you be more specific?"  
  
"Can't you just enjoy the beer?"  
  
"Hey now, I AM enjoying the beer. I'm just curious as to how things are working out with the two of you. Last time I saw you two together at that little impromptu dinner we had, things were looking great. Never saw the both of you so outwardly happy like that." His old teacher responded, raising his beercan in half-salute.  
  
The impromptu dinner that Onizuka referred to happened two weeks prior. As Kikuchi and Kanzaki were out on one of their dates, Eikichi and Azusa chanced upon them, also on a date of their own. They almost froze in panic when they realized that they were still holding hands as Mr. and Mrs. Onizuka walked over and started chatting them up; yet as surprises came and went, the two didn't seem to make such a big deal out of it. Admittedly, that little detail bugged Yoshito.  
  
[Odd, that. I was pretty sure you'd make a huge production out of it.]  
  
Finally relenting, Kikuchi sighed and answered his old teacher's question. "We're good to each other. It's not all fun and games of course" he replied, the beer obviously making him share more than he normally would. He held his can out at arm's length and stared at it.  
  
[This is good shit.] He thought as he shrugged, chugged the contents and opened another.  
  
"Mmmm... that goes without saying. Relationships seldom are." Eikichi started ticking off his fingers. "Finding and making time to go out on dates, with work and all that hanging over your head. Little misunderstandings that grow into spats, etc. etc."  
  
Kikuchi continued where his teacher left off. "Hah, you said it. And then when you ask them straight out if anything's wrong, they say 'nothing' and yet expect you to read their minds! Imagine that!"  
  
Eikichi smirked. As to place an exclamation at the end of Yoshito's last statement, Onizuka held his can out to toast the point. Grinning, Kikuchi vigorously smacked his drink against his old teacher's, apparently with enough force to spill some of the contents. They then proceeded to down what was left; definitely male bonding at its finest, simple and direct to the point.  
  
Grabbing some more alcohol and tossing one to his drinking partner, the genius leaned back and mused. "You know what's weird though, it all just seemed to happen so fast. I mean, one day I hear from you that she's back in town, so I look her up and we have lunch together. Next thing I know I'm pissing in my pants figuring out a way to ask her out, and when I finally do, she's all game for it. And then, on the night of the date itself, we make out like a pair of teenagers."  
  
[Aww shit. You just HAD to tell him about that last part.] he thought, immediately regretting his candor.  
  
Hearing this, Onizuka cocked an eyebrow and flashed his trademark leer. "Nice. So is she a real blonde? I've been dying to know."  
  
Though Yoshito considered grabbing an empty can and smacking his teacher with it, he chuckled inwardly at the mental picture the question brought him. Wanting to close the subject matter at hand though, he decided to go with something else more in line with his style.  
  
"I wonder how Mrs. Onizuka would react if she knew you asked me that?" Kikuchi replied off-handedly.   
  
Having quickly weighed his options, Onizuka remained silent and took another sip of his beer, his expression nothing more than a slight pout.  
  
Satisfied, Yoshito spoke again. "Anyway I dunno... everything just seemed to fall into place real easy. I'm just not used to things being all hunkey-dorey in such a short span of time."  
  
"So what exactly is your problem?"  
  
[Argh. How did you become a teacher again?]  
  
"Do I have to repeat myself? Too easy."  
  
Eikichi slapped his forehead, exasperated at Kikuchi's line of thought. "You know, thing with you geniuses is that your heads keep making problems where there aren't any. Can't you just accept the way things happened and actually be happy that they turned out this way?" Onizuka said, wagging his finger at his old student.  
  
It didn't take a genius's IQ to know Eikichi was right. The alcohol further loosening his tongue, Yoshito decided to just lay his cards out.  
  
"Look, for the record, I AM having the time of my life. I just can't help thinking about it."  
  
Onizuka couldn't help but be amused at his former student's blatant show of honesty; usually it took longer to pry these things out of him. He's also changed a little in the past month or so; it was almost imperceptible at first, but as the Yoshito he had always known was cool and laidback, this one now seemed more... alive. Vibrant even. He chalked it off as a result of the kid's blossoming relationship with Kanzaki (in addition to the beer of course). With everything being said and done, he mentally congratulated himself for his part in the matter.  
  
"You two are hopeless. Well I guess there's no harm in telling you now. I, your Great Teacher Onizuka, am partly responsible for her being so open to the idea of dating you. There. Guilty. You can show your appreciation by giving me what we have left of the beer later."  
  
Kikuchi slowly turned his head to face the self-proclaimed great teacher. "Excuse me? Okay, you've got about ten seconds to explain before all this beer goes sailing over the fence."  
  
To Eikichi, this was unthinkable. "Idiot! This is quality stuff! It's practically a sin to waste beer like this!!"  
  
[Only because I've got more where this came from. Now spill.]  
  
Kikuchi just stared at him. His expression read 'Try me.'  
  
"All right all right! Geez. Sometime after you two went out for lunch she calls me up in the middle of the night. Asks me about you and all that. She sounded groggy, so maybe she had a dream with you in it or something."  
  
[A dream huh? Woohoo.]  
  
"What did she say?"  
  
"Oh come now. You know I can't tell you that. Unless you want me to break Urumi's trust and confidence?"  
  
"Bah." Another point to Onizuka. He hated it when that happened.  
  
"Look, what difference does it make? It was pretty much the same thing as convincing you to look her up. End result? You two are together, things are looking good, and you're blissfully in love if I'm not mistaken. Sounds good if you ask me." Eikichi replied as he added a belch to reinforce his statement.  
  
Yoshito groaned. "The L word."  
  
"Wait, you two HAVE exchanged the requisite I-Love-You's right?"  
  
"Not really."   
  
[It's a pride thing, a test of wills thing.]  
  
"Oy. You two are hopeless." Onizuka said, hanging his head.  
  
"Doesn't mean we don't though. We do. I'm pretty sure about it..."  
  
[Are you?]  
  
Kikuchi continued to feign his confidence. "We're just waiting to see who cracks first."  
  
His teacher had apparently ingested enough alcohol to fail to notice his millisecond's worth of self-doubt.   
  
"Don't put off for tomorrow what you can do today. I tell my family I love them every chance I get. It's a crazy world I tell you. Life's too short not to experience it fully."  
  
"Yer getting sappy 'teach."  
  
"I'm drunk. Sue me. Can I take this beer home?"  
  
"Help yourself. Get half of what we got left when we're done."  
  
"Great."  
  
Yoshito went silent for a handful seconds, pondering another of his newly-conceived insecurities.  
  
[Oh what the hell. Let's see what he thinks.]  
  
"One more thing though. Kinda serious, if you can still handle it."  
  
"Oh please. You know I can go from drunk to sober in the brink of an eye."  
  
[You mean BLINK of an eye don't you?]  
  
"Yeah whatever. Anyway, I just wanted to ask... how much should the other party in a relationship know about you and your past?"  
  
[I'm asking for relationship advice from Onizuka. Ugh. What the hell is wrong with me?]  
  
A small bell tingled in the back of Eikichi's brain, signaling that there was more to Kikuchi's trust issue than met the eye.  
  
"Hmmm... that depends. In your case, I think it'd only be fair to let her in a little more than most everyone else, since A) you yourself already know a great deal about her past and B) you two are dating seriously I presume?"  
  
"Of course."  
  
This was the only time Yoshito ever found himself second-guessing his analyses of a relationship, something that he never had to do with the rest. Kanzaki Urumi was definitely different. Nowadays, he sincerely hoped that 'different' was a good thing.  
  
"Go ahead then. Let her in some more, bit by bit."  
  
It was Kikuchi's turn to belch, which afterwards he started reasoning. "Mmm. What about the whole 'keeping a mystery, strong and silent' deal?"  
  
Onizuka chuckled. "That's the spirit. Well, coming from a guy who married his first and only girlfriend, I can only tell you what I've seen. And to be honest, I've witnessed that method work with the people around me; yourself included with your past girlfriends. But you know what? Call me a sentimental old fart because I definitely believe that no 'approach' is even necessary when it comes to that one special person. Take Azusa and myself for example. I never felt I had to pretend to be anything else other than the already great man that I was when I was around her. So yeah, mystery and the whole strong and silent thing will most likely get your foot in the door, but isn't really a great way to go by for the rest of the relationship."  
  
"So I do... what?"  
  
"Just relax and be yourself kid. Take it slowly and surely, but don't keep that heart of yours hidden away under lock and key. Don't wear it on your sleeve either. Just be the Kikuchi Yoshito she's always known and unknowingly depended on."  
  
"Eh? Depended on? What're you talking about?"  
  
"Oh stop pretending already will you? I've known you were looking out for her as early as junior high. I wouldn't be a great teacher if I didn't know what was going on with my students."  
  
[Wonderful. I wonder what else he knows.]  
  
Yoshito sighed and glanced up at the crescent moon, his thoughts drifting to Urumi once more.  
  
Onizuka noticed this and smiled.  
  
"You really like her don't you?" he said, breaking the silence and purposely refraining from using the other L word.  
  
"Yeah. She's a great girl. Funny, witty, smart as hell... the list goes on. What else can a man in my position ask for right?"  
  
"You forgot to mention gorgeous."  
  
"That too."  
  
"Haha. Don't worry it's all good. Admitting your physical attraction to her doesn't cheapen the relationship one bit."  
  
"Heh. Yeah... you're right. Thanks 'teach. 'Guess this time I owe you."  
  
[Not to mention I should give you more credit. You're a lot sharper than you let on.]  
  
"Oh please. Just looking out for you two kids."   
  
Onizuka held out his beercan.  
  
"One more toast. To you and Kanzaki Urumi. May you never piss her off enough to find a habu in your pants."  
  
Yoshito laughed out loud and drank heartily to the toast.  
  
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A/N:  
  
En Vino Veritas = latin for "In Wine, Truth" I tried looking up the exact source of this famous quote, but all I got was 'Anonymous.' Ah well, I'm sure pretty much everyone's experienced the so-called 'clarity' of thought associated with being buzzed (not rip-roaring drunk though).  
  
Many thanks to those who took the time out to R&R: Hermionini, Dargon Sheinto, iron kitty, Allence of the Weed, Cattleya Glory, Prizz, mikethebigW, SILENT TROWA, and cul girl!!!! =)  
  
Hermionini, Dargon Sheinto, cul girl!!!!: Glad you all liked it! Thanks for reviewing!  
  
iron kitty: Good thing your hubby was around to explain things =P Thanks for the props, hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!  
  
Allence of the Weed: Ahhh to be young again. sigh anyway yeah I can understand taglish perfectly. or tagalog. or a smattering of spanish. take your pick =) thanks for the great review!  
  
Cattleya Glory: hey now,'course folks here care if you review or not; and by all means do say what you think. it's a free internet =) lemme know what confused you in chap8 the next time you review ok? thanks again!  
  
Prizz: They went as far as your imagination can take you. Though definitely no home runs... yet. =P Glad you liked that chapter!  
  
mikethebigW: Thanks for reminding me where I heard that line from bro. Ya, she's definitely a fine wine to be savored slowly. And you're spot on re the 'journey' being as important (or more!) as the destination. Keeo rocking with Behind the Mask! Thanks for the props!  
  
SILENT TROWA: Maybe it has to do with me being a fencer waaay back. Then again maybe not =P I try to put in as much of the classic work/texts and historical analogies/references as I can, but I don't want to force it in if it doesn't really fit the character or chapter i.e. Onizuka quoting Sun Tzu or Musashi Miyamoto regarding 'strategy.' Hope you liked this one as well!  
  
'Then and Now' should start winding down by this chapter. Maybe two or three more chapters to go, and then sporadic updates from thereon; only when something new comes to mind.  
  
Thanks again everyone! Stay tuned till the next chapter!  
  
ja ne 


	10. Reality Check

THEN AND NOW  
  
By: Miguel Artadi  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own GTO and any of the characters in it. I'd be rich if I did.  
  
( ) = Kanzaki's thoughts   
  
Chapter X - Reality Check  
  
"You love this place, don't you?" Kanzaki piped up, a tad curious hinting evident in her voice.  
  
The day had begun innocently enough. The two geniuses had gone out on the town to quietly celebrate their relationship reaching the three-month mark; starting off with dinner and a few drinks, then deciding to cap it off as they normally did, finding themselves again strolling lazily along the pathways of Inokashira Park, worn but happy after the day's events.  
  
"Is it that obvious?"  
  
"Well to say that half our dates end up here would be a gross understatement."  
  
Kikuchi chuckled. "True. Why? Afraid the goddess Benzaiten will take me away from you?1 You're the last person I'd expect to believe in such superstition miss Kanzaki." He replied, teasing her playfully the way he always did in their lighter moments.  
  
Urumi raised an eyebrow in mock surprise. (Ooooh.)  
  
"Psh. Is that your half-assed way of telling me you're head over heels in love with me?"  
  
"Maybe. Is that YOURS?" he countered.  
  
Kanzaki made a face. (Is it though?)   
  
Yoshito laughed heartedly and squeezed her hand. She responded by pressing closer to him, taking in the warmth his body offered. For all intents and purposes, bliss was the order of the night as they continued to enjoy their little walk. Moving further along the path, they found to their liking that their favorite bench was deserted, and decided to settle themselves down and unwind, each lost in their own thoughts. In the silence, Kikuchi reached around and draped his arm around Urumi, pulling her in and playing with her hair. She in turn leaned even closer and rested her head on his shoulders, savoring the cool night air.  
  
If Kanzaki was feline, she would've been purring contentedly as she closed her eyes and relaxed. In her mind replayed a conversation she had with Nomura Tomoko a few weeks earlier. Her best friend since Seirin had now bloomed into an entertainment icon in Asia, and had spent the past few months abroad filming her most recent project. Keeping in touch for the past decade had mostly been in the form of irregular e-mails, with the occasional phone call here and there occurring when busy schedules allowed, finally punctuated by the much rarer instances of getting together when they actually found themselves in the same city. That night however, it was by mobile from Toroko on location in Hong Kong.  
  
"So when are you coming back to Tokyo? Been ages since I last saw you." Kanzaki asked.  
  
"About another month or so. I should get some time off when we wrap the shoots and the editing begins. But wait, forget that. I want to hear about what you've been up to. That last email you sent me left me hanging. So who's the 'old friend' you hooked up with?"  
  
If there was one single thing that Nomura was better at than Kanzaki, IQ differences and everything it came with taken into account, relationships and dealing with the opposite sex was it. Made quite a lot of sense too, since Nomura with her innocent face, F cups and slender waist had been the stuff of young men's wet dreams since her debut ten-plus years ago.  
  
Urumi bit her lip. "Well... um... you remember Kikuchi?"  
  
Tomoko giggled. "Kikuchi Yoshito? Really? Well... I'm not really that surprised. It's about time, I must say."  
  
(You too? Geez.)  
  
"Are you serious? I guess someone forgot to tell me about it, huh?"  
  
"I think everyone thought you two would be good together, no one just bothered to say anything because they were afraid of getting on your bad side. You know, I think he'd be a great match for you; he's not the type to bend over and scare easily when you start playing your mind games. Which is more than I can say for the other boytoys you've told me about."  
  
Urumi smiled. Guilty as charged.  
  
"Yeah well he's definitely a tougher nut to crack. But we'll see." She finished with a laugh.  
  
"Ooooh you're so bad. Now be honest girl, is it serious?"  
  
Kanzaki started twirling her hair at this point. "I think...I hope so. Kikuchi's a good man; stable and dependable, but definitely not boring like I first thought he was. Funny too, so I guess hanging out with 'teach rubbed off on him some. He's also a lot more complex than he lets on, and I like that. We take good care of each other, which is always a good thing. Of course he's still a guy, which means in some ways he's still like a big kid. I mean, you know men; gadgets and gizmos, toys for the big boys, guys' night out and what have you. But don't get me wrong, I care for him a lot."  
  
"Mmm-hmm. You two fight?"  
  
"Of course. Can you believe that sometimes he actually prefers to spend time with his friends rather than me? And don't get me started when Yoshikawa comes into town. Him, Yoshito and Onizuka just go crazy I tell you. Think about it, three guys out on the town who KNOW they've got looks, brains, money and muscle, all fueled by alcohol."  
  
Nomura giggled, knowing perfectly what her friend meant. Boys will indeed be boys, no matter how old they are; which isn't necessarily a bad thing, mind you.  
  
"Okay, tell me everything. And I mean EVERYTHING from the very beginning. Don't skimp on the details."  
  
"Haha. Okay. Well you see about two months back, just about a week or so after I arrive in town, I get this phone call in my hotel room, which I thought was really weird because I told the staff not to..."  
  
And so for the next hour, Kanzaki proceeded to narrate and fill her best friend in with intricate detail on how the past few months had been regarding her and her boyfriend's relationship. The ups, the downs, the dates and the intimate post-date hormone-burning sessions... not a single detail spared. Listening intently, now and then Toroko would burst out laughing and ask a question.  
  
"So is he a good kisser?"  
  
and  
  
"Are you serious? He's got a birthmark right on his what?"  
  
also  
  
"Oh my God. He did that? You poor thing. You didn't let him get away with that did you?"  
  
and of course,  
  
"Haha!! He's ticklish WHERE???"  
  
Finally finishing, out of breath from giggling and laughing so hard, Kanzaki sighed. Tomoko noted this and spoke first, breaking the silence.  
  
"It sounds like you're falling for him, I mean if you haven't already."  
  
This immediately had Urumi on the defensive. "Whaaat? That's crazy. I care for him yes, but falling for him? Please. Now whatever makes you say that?"  
  
The genius heard her friend sigh loudly through the earpiece. "Urumi, I'm your best friend, so don't lie to me. Listen to yourself. You've talked about him for the past hour, given me the smallest details on your relationship with him. Told me how great he is, complained about how you wish he could change in the tiniest ways... I mean do I have to go on?"  
  
Silence.  
  
"Urumi dear, there's nothing wrong with admitting that you love someone."  
  
(Yes there is.)  
  
"But that makes you open to getting hurt." Urumi finally relenting, replied. "I mean, look at what Fujimori did when I got close to her." She added, again referring to that life-changing event back in elementary.  
  
"You're right, but what about Onizuka? He never abandoned you, or any of us for that matter."  
  
"I know. But 'teach is different; he's one of those one-in-a-million type of people. Now what are my chances that Kikuchi is exactly like that? Next to impossible I tell you. And trust me, I've done the math." She shot back, purposely ignoring for the moment that her dream that fateful night had answered this question already. Normally, reasoning with Nomura was peanuts. For the next few minutes however, Kanzaki saw a completely different side to her best friend, as Tomoko cleared her throat, changed her tone and spoke in a level, modulated voice. A trick she obviously picked up in her acting career.  
  
"Urumi... pardon me in advance for what I'm about to say. But as your best friend, it's my obligation to do so."  
  
(Huh?)  
  
"I love you like a sister, but you're... you're still acting like a coward."  
  
Urumi couldn't believe her ears. "Excuse me?"  
  
"Let me finish. You've been pushing people away your entire life. People you think that had the capacity to hurt you if they got too close: your friends, teachers, even those guys you met while you were traveling the world, some of which I'm sure had genuine intentions towards you. Now I'm not quite unsure if this is the result of that mess with Fujimori, or if it comes from even earlier on with your issues with your mother, but let me tell you this: these are the most shallow reasons not to trust and love someone. You see the moment you sense that things are getting really serious, and the tendency for you to get hurt gets bigger, you panic."  
  
"Tomoko, stop it."  
  
"I'm sorry but I will not. Hang up if you want, but I'm going to continue until you do so." Nomura answered, after which she started again right where she left off.  
  
"You panic. At first you hold them at arm's length, which I think you're doing now. Then you start pushing them away. And when that doesn't work, you MAKE them walk away from you by pulling off some evil, crazy scheme. Now when they finally do and everything's over and done with, you end up feeling alone and sorry for yourself, having once again accomplished your self-fulfilling abandonment issues."  
  
With that last line, tears slowly rolled down Kanzaki's cheeks, her tasting the salty tang of them upon reaching her lips . Part of her wanted to hang up and end the conversation, but the other side that held her back from doing so knew Tomoko was right.  
  
"It's what you've been doing forever Urumi. Owing to your genius, it explains everything perfectly. Except you didn't count on two things: Onizuka's bull-headedness and myself actually figuring it out."  
  
(But... what? How?) she thought as Nomura was right again. The two people that escaped Kanzaki's prodigious 'screening' process and had found their ways into her confidence was Onizuka and Toroko. Eikichi simply having gotten through by the sheer anti-thetic brilliance of his stupidity and Tomoko, owing to Urumi's deductive reasoning that her extremely naive yet giving nature, compounded along with her 'slowness' meant that she realistically did not pose any sort of threat to someone with Urumi's level of intellect.  
  
Hearing this, Kanzaki was flabbergasted. She found herself grasping for words. "I'm sorry. Please don't think that..."  
  
"Oh hush. I figured it out a long time ago and it doesn't change anything. You're my best friend. Period."  
  
"Thank... you."  
  
"Anyway my point is you have to stop hurting yourself Urumi. Yes you're a far cry from the emotional black hole you were in Seirin, but you're still holding yourself back from experiencing what life has to offer fully. And trust me. It's beautiful."  
  
(But...)  
  
"What if it doesn't work out?"  
  
"Then at the very least you would've grown as a person. Plus I'm certain that knowing you, you'll still have all the wonderful memories of the relationship; which you can always keep replaying over and over in your head."  
  
"You make it sound so simple Tomoko."  
  
"Only because it is. C'mon, just trust me on this. Please?"  
  
Kanzaki sighed. "Yeah. Okay. You're right."  
  
"Good. Hee-hee. You won't regret it."  
  
"Thanks for straightening me out."  
  
"You're very welcome. Sorry if I was a little rough on you back there."  
  
"Naw it's okay, you did what you had to do I guess. Answer me this though, where did you learn to talk like that? Self-fulfilling abandonment issues? Emotional black holes? Where'd you dig that up? Been reading much psych material lately?"  
  
"Of course not! I got them from soap opera scripts silly, where else?"  
  
(Wonderful.)  
  
"Anyway... it's getting late. I have an early shoot tomorrow morning. Keep me updated with what happens to you two?"  
  
"Promise. Take care y'hear? G'night."  
  
"You too."  
  
Setting down the phone after hearing the disconnecting 'click,' Urumi spent another ten minutes lying face-up on her bed and staring up at the ceiling. She thought more of Kikuchi Yoshito... and smiled at the sweet memories they brought her.  
  
(I THINK I love you.) she thought. Wanting to try it out, she cleared her throat and tried saying it out loud.  
  
"I... love..."   
  
(Oh for crying out loud, we're just trying it out. One more time?)   
  
"I love you."  
  
"Urumi?"  
  
(No way that's Tomoko. Yoshito?)  
  
"Huh?" Kanzaki looked around, her eyes focusing on Kikuchi's face hovering just inches away from hers, his hand on her cheek. "Yoshito? What's going on?" Kanzaki blurted out, apparently confused. She found herself lying down on the park bench face up, her head resting on his lap.  
  
"You fell asleep. You looked so cute I didn't want to wake you. Plus you seemed really tired, so I let you sleep on my lap and watched over you. It's been an hour, more or less."  
  
"I did? Sorry. Not much of an anniversary date huh?" Urumi replied with a grin, stretching and shaking the cobwebs off.  
  
"Nah, pretty interesting one actually. You do know you talk in your sleep right?"  
  
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A/N:  
  
1 - According to local Kichijoji lore, the goddess Benzaiten, who is enshrined within the park in a small Meiseisan Taiseiji temple, seems to be a jealous one. The story is that if you take your date to the park, you will break up soon after.

Sorry for the long delay everyone, school's about to begin and preparing for it has been eating up most of my energy and time. Anyhow, I still have every intention of finishing this fic, so even though the updates will come less often, I promise that they will.  
  
Again, thanks to those who took the time out to R&R! Namely: TimeReaper, Misao Seta, iron kitty, seth7, Allence of the Weed, Prizz, mikethebigW, Dargon sheinto, Ayce Shade, fayth03, A Noble Romancer, Miriae and rabid lola. Thank you, thank you, THANK you. =)  
  
Time Reaper, Misao Seta, Dargon Sheinto: Glad you liked it! Hope you liked this one as well! Thanks for reviewing!  
  
iron kitty: Apologies again if this took so long, but hey! Better late than never right? Thanks for the review! =D Oh, and ONLY 5 clicks of damage??!? Doh.  
  
seth7: Dude, you flatter me too much =) Thanks bro. Hope you enjoyed this one as well!  
  
Allence of the Weed: 'Kaw naman oh... I have no idea how to respond to that =P thanks =)  
  
Prizz: Haha sorry if you found the last one too short. Maybe this one fills ya up better? :p  
  
mikethebigW: As always, thanks for reviewing matey. I'm just guessing I've got 2 or 3 more good chapters left in me before this turns stale. Which I don't want to happen of course. But hey, who knows right?? Thanks for the props! Keep rockin!  
  
Ayce Shade: Yeah that's me, mister convo guy. Heh. To each his (or her) own right? Glad you found it interesting though, thanks for reviewing!  
  
fayth03: Yeah, I think they're perfect for each other too. =)  
  
A Noble Romancer: Man, I really don't know how to respond to your review. I'm frickn speechless here. THANK YOU. I hope you like this chapter as well. Again, thanks!  
  
Miriae: Yeah, beer does wonders =P  
  
rabid lola: Amen to "life's too short." Glad you liked it!  
  
Till the next time!  
  
ja ne =)


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